All dredging activities were completed at the new Suez Canal project after a total of 250 million cubic meters of water-saturated sand have been lifted, the Armed Forces said.

Only 20 days remain for the grand opening of the project, the army said in a report.

Currently, 34 dredgers are working on the project's three sectors, the report said.

On 5 August 2014, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi launched the new waterway project, which is being dug alongside the Suez Canal. It is meant to add an extra lane to the Suez Canal, one of the world's most important thoroughfares for trade, in an attempt to increase the number of ships using it each day.

The Suez Canal, which allows ships to travel from Europe to Asia without navigating around Africa, only provides for one-way traffic, with occasional room for ships to pass each other. The new lane will allow ships to travel in both directions.