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Swedish engineering rescues Egyptian temples

March 9, 2004 | Press release

SWECO has been commissioned to protect the Luxor and Karnak temples in Luxor, Egypt, from rising groundwater. The assignment is worth over half a million euros.

The Luxor and Karnak temples originate from 2000-1500 BC and are two of Egypt’s most prestigious cultural treasures. UNESCO has designated the temples as World Heritage Sites.

The project is a follow-up to a 1999 assignment, where SWECO were entrusted to propose a suitable engineering solution to deal with the problem of high levels of groundwater around the temples. The temples’ sandstone is on the point of disintegrating due to the salt crystallisation that is caused by the rising groundwater being absorbed into the stones. In the forthcoming phase of the project, SWECO will prepare the tender documentation for the construction work, comprehensive engineering specifications and drawings and administrative regulations and will attend to the procurement of the contractor. In 18 months time, SWECO will also supply an on-site inspector during the construction period, to ensure that the engineering solutions are realised as they were intended.

SWECO has been active in Egypt since 1949 and has implemented a large number of projects, for example, within the power and water resources sectors and in city and traffic planning. Most recently, SWECO has been involved in the rehabilitation of the High Dam Hydropower Plant in Aswan.

SWECO has been commissioned to carry out the assignment by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, Sida and the construction work is financed by the United States Agency for International Development, USAID.

Anna Elisabeth Olsson

Head of Press and Public Affairs