Energy Egypt’s first hybrid solar project to break ground next year Norway’s renewable energy producer Scatec will begin work on Egypt’s first hybrid solar power and battery storage project in the first half of 2025. The company has signed a US dollar-denominated 25-year power purchase agreement with the state-run Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company for a 1GW solar power plant and 100MW battery storage project. Financial details […] September 13, 2024
Economy Tax reforms launched by Egypt to entice more investors A range of measures to make the Egyptian tax system more transparent and attract further investors to the country has been unveiled by finance minister Ahmed Kouchouk. The reforms will boost the country’s competitiveness and make it easier for foreign investors to work there, Kouchouk said in a press conference on Wednesday. “It’s evident that […] September 12, 2024
Economy Egypt holds key policy rates steady as inflation eases Egypt’s central bank left its key policy rates unchanged as inflation continued to subside amid softening growth. The lending and deposit rates were kept intact at 28.25 percent and 27.25 percent. Inflationary pressure has continued to subside with the gradual easing of previous shocks, the central bank said in a statement. NewsletterGet the Best of […] September 6, 2024
Trade Turkey and Egypt mend relationship with state visit Turkey and Egypt have moved closer to rapprochement after a decade of strained ties. Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Egypt’s president Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi signed 17 memorandums of understanding during the latter’s one-day visit to Ankara on Wednesday. Among the agreements signed were commitments to boost cooperation in finance, energy, defence and tourism. NewsletterGet […] September 5, 2024
Economy Egypt’s private sector begins to feel impact of reforms Egypt’s non-oil private sector economy expanded for the first time in three years as the impact of the government’s currency strategy and international investment drive begins to trickle down to the business community. The country’s economic outlook was transformed in February following a $35 billion investment deal for Emirati sovereign wealth fund ADQ to develop […] September 3, 2024
Infrastructure Egypt awards $885m contract to upgrade Cairo metro A consortium led by Orascom Construction, listed on Dubai, Egypt and Nasdaq stock exchanges, will commence the modernisation of the Cairo metro line 1 next month. The €800 million ($885 million) project will be completed in 64 months without disturbing commercial operations. The consortium has signed a contract with Egypt’s National Authority for Tunnels to […] September 3, 2024
Real Estate ADQ’s Egypt project lights fire under region’s real estate The $35 billion investment by the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ in Egypt’s tourism sector appears to have spurred a jump in real estate transactions on the country’s Mediterranean coast. In February ADQ unveiled its plan to build Egypt’s “largest new city” in Ras El-Hekma, and develop the coastal region into a Mediterranean vacation […] September 2, 2024
Analysis Banking & Finance Funding flows to fintechs wooing Egypt’s eager borrowers Egyptian financial technology entrepreneurs bagged the highest amount of funding in the Middle East and North Africa in July, as they targeted untapped opportunities among the country’s massive unbanked population. Egyptian startups as a whole raised $185 million across seven deals in July, a huge surge from $15 million raised through four deals the month […] September 2, 2024
Renewable Energy Masdar to invest $900m in solar projects in Egypt The UAE’s renewables energy major Masdar has received approval from the Egyptian government to invest more than $900 million to build solar power plants. These projects will have a combined capacity of 1,000 megawatts (MW) and will be located primarily in Upper Egypt, including the Aswan governorate, Egypt Today newspaper reported, citing a cabinet statement. […] September 2, 2024
Construction Orascom Construction’s US revenue softens Mena decline Egypt’s Orascom Construction has reported a decline in its second-quarter revenues after a 25 percent drop in Mena revenue was softened by growth in its US business. Volatility in the value of the Egyptian currency also drove a decline in net profit for the Cairo-based company, from $92.8 million in the same period last year […] August 28, 2024
Oil & Gas Egypt announces new Western Desert oil discovery Egypt’s Khalda Petroleum Company has made a new oil discovery in the Kalabsha Development Area of the Western Desert, as the country aims to overcome power shortages and stalling production levels. The discovery, 270 feet below the ground, will produce 7,165 barrels of oil per day with 23 million cubic feet of associated gas, according […] August 28, 2024
Renewable Energy Egypt advances 7,150MW of renewable energy projects Egypt is actively developing 7,150 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy projects, a government official has said. These projects are divided into 3,450MW of wind energy and 3,700MW of solar power. The wind energy projects include collaborations on the Red Sea involving the Orascom-Engie-Toyota consortium, Saudi Arabia’s Acwa Power and UAE’s Masdar, Egypt Today newspaper reported, […] August 28, 2024
Analysis Construction Mena hotel construction to focus on Saudi Arabia and Egypt The Middle East and North Africa is forecast to see a rapid increase in hotel construction over the next 12 months, led in particular by high-end properties in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, new industry data suggests. During the second quarter of 2024 there were 607 projects and 147,088 rooms in the overall regional pipeline at […] August 27, 2024
Manufacturing Nissan to invest $56m in Egyptian car market Nissan plans to invest $56 million into the Egyptian car market over the next two years and increase exports of locally assembled vehicles, as government officials seek to enhance the homegrown manufacturing sector. A statement released by the government said that Nissan has exported 15,000 locally assembled Sunny models since August 2022. Mohamed Abdel Samad, […] August 19, 2024
Renewable Energy Masdar joint venture to build wind farm in Egypt Infinity Power, a joint venture between Egypt’s Infinity and the UAE’s Masdar, has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC) for their 200-megawatt (MW) wind farm. The onshore wind project, located in Ras Ghareb, Gulf of Suez region, is estimated to produce 810,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) annually. Consequentially, it will […] August 19, 2024
Renewable Energy Egypt reveals ambitious hydrogen strategy Egypt’s newly launched hydrogen energy strategy will require the investment of around $60 billion over the coming decades to achieve its ambitious targets. However, research by Bloomberg this week highlighted the fact that the majority of existing hydrogen plants around the world have failed to attract sufficient buyers for their output. On Thursday Egypt launched […] August 16, 2024
Analysis Sustainability Egypt launches Africa into carbon trading market The first three trades were made on Egypt’s new carbon trading platform on Tuesday, the first of its kind in Africa. Two local food companies, Daltex and ISIS Organic, became the first Egyptian buyers of the instruments, purchasing a combined 2,000 carbon credits. Each credit represents a tonne of carbon reduced or removed from the […] August 16, 2024
Health Egypt’s government approves private health investments Egypt’s government on Wednesday approved executive regulations for a bill that allows private investment in its public hospitals for the first time. The law, which obtained presidential ratification in June, allows Egyptian and foreign companies to bid to manage and operate existing public hospitals for a period of between three to 15 years. A statement […] August 15, 2024
Banking & Finance EFG Holding quarterly revenues surge 63% to $104m Egypt-based EFG Holding said revenues surged 63 percent year on year to EGP5.1 billion ($104 million) in the second quarter of 2024 thanks to strong income from the investment banking division. The group’s different verticals – investment bank EFG Hermes, EFG Finance, the non-bank financial institution and aiBank, the commercial bank – all posted strong growth in the […] August 15, 2024
Opinion Economy Egypt’s economy is on a path to recovery A policy shift has laid the foundations for strong medium term growth August 9, 2024