Egypt is building an artificial river, spanning 114 kilometres in length, parallel to the Nile River, Egypt Independent reported.

The Nile River, whose distant source is believed to be Nyungwe forest from Rwanda, is the primary water source of Egypt, Sudan and South Sudan.

Additionally, the Nile is an important economic river, supporting agriculture and fishing.

Egypt is digging through the desert to create the largest artificial river in the northwest of the country, next to the Dabaa nuclear power plant, as part of its 'New Delta' project.

The project, valued at 160 billion Egyptian pounds ($5.25 billion), will be the longest of its kind in the world and irrigate 2.2 million acres.

Professor of Water Resources and Irrigation, Abbas Sharaky said the first channel is 42 km long, including 26 km of pipes, and 16 km of open tracks to transport about 10 million cubic meters from the Rashid branch within the Mostakbal Egypt project.

This, he said, represents the first phase of the grand project in the New Delta, with a total of about 3.5 billion cubic meters annually to irrigate about 600,000 acres, in addition to groundwater wells to irrigate 450,000 acres, with a total of 1.05 million acres, in which there are six large water pumping stations.

"The second channel extends about 170 km from Hammam station to transfer seven million cubic meters/ day, with a total of about 2.5 billion cubic meters, to the south of Dabaa, to irrigate about 800,000 acres, of which 22 km are pipes with a length of 220 km and a diameter of three meters, and 148 km of the open canal, with 13 water pumping stations."

"The third channel within the Jannat Masr (Egypt Paradise) project, which is two pipelines with a length of 12 km, to irrigate about 64,000 acres, from the southern and western wastewater treatment plants in the 6th of October City, and the desalination of salty groundwater through 132 underground wells, and three water pumping stations," he added.