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Egypt turns to Russia for help with desalination plants amid Nile dam crisis

Egypt is seeking to move forward in the implementation of new seawater desalination projects in cooperation with Russia, to cover its water deficit amid the stalling negotiations on Addis Ababa’s dam on the Blue Nile.
This picture taken on June 19, 2020 from a ferry shows a view of the Hurghada Marina in Egypt's southern Red Sea resort city, with the Red Sea hills seen in the background. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP) (Photo by KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images)

CAIRO — Egypt is seeking to move forward in the implementation of new seawater desalination projects in cooperation with the Russian Rusnano Group, which specializes in this field, to fill the country’s water deficit that exceeds 20 billion cubic meters per year amid the faltering negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

Tripartite negotiations over the GERD continue to stall as the last round of talks held Jan. 10 failed to make any progress between Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan.

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