The board of the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) approved several new projects in a meeting on Thursday, the zone said in a statement.

#1- New steel complex to pump out 1.8 mn tons for export: The SCZone’s board approved the establishment of a new steelworks in the East Ismailia industrial area. The 1.2 mn-sqm complex will cost USD 610 mn to establish and produce 1.8 mn tons of steel per year for export to foreign markets. The statement did not disclose which companies are involved.

#2- Chinese ironworks pending final approval: The SCZone’s board granted preliminary approval to a Chinese consortium to establish a USD 300 mn ironworks in Sokhna, SCZone head Walid Gamal El Din said. The two companies — state-owned Sonoma and private metals manufacturer Xinfeng — proposed a two-phase complex last month that will be built over 750k sqm and provide 1.2k jobs. The project would produce 600k tons of sheet metal a year.

#3- Ready-made garments in SCZone: Clothing company Shanghai Shengda got the go-ahead to set up a factory for ready-made garments in Qantara West Industrial area, two weeks after it signed a letter of intent with SCZone representatives during its roadshow in China. About USD 40 mn would be invested in the factory over two phases. The factory is expected to produce 43 mn items each year, all of which would be exported to the US. It is also expected to create 1.2k jobs.

#4- Concrete Plus to lay foundation for a tire plant: Concrete Plus received approval to build a EUR 750 mn tire manufacturing plant. It aims to produce around 2.4 mn tires for cargo trucks and passenger vehicles every year. The factory will create some 700 jobs.

#5- Flex PET gets a storage area: Indian plastic packaging manufacturer Flex PET will build a storage area for raw materials after the board greenlit the move. The company began construction on its USD 110 mn plastics plant in April. The plant will produce 30k tons of polyethylene a month and is expected to be fully operational by mid-2025. It will provide 700 jobs.

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