Up to 131.104 million cubic meters of water-saturated sand have been dredged so far as part of the Suez Canal Development Project, said Mohab Mamish, head of the Suez Canal Authority, Friday.

As many as 37 dredgers are working in the project, Mamish said.

The daily dredging rate stands at about 1.589 million cubic meters of sand, he said.

The digging was funded through granting investment certificates to Egyptians with a 12% interest rate, and in eight days more than 60 billion pounds were collected.