THIS EVENING: EEHC, EGPC take on loans for power plant maintenance + mazut imports

Good afternoon, friends, and welcome to a busy start of the second week of August. We hope that you have been managing the blackouts well and ready for the week to unfold.

THE BIG STORIES TODAY

El Sisi sits down with Madbouly + Abdalla + cabinet economic group: President Abdel Fattah El Sisi discussed Egypt’s current macroeconomic conditions and the steps policymakers are taking to hit economic targets and attract investments, while pushing forward with its structural reform program in a meeting today, according to an Ittihadiya statement. The meeting brought together Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly, Central Bank of Egypt Governor Hassan Abdalla, Planning Minister Hala El Said, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait, International Cooperation Minister Rania Al Mashat, intelligence chief Abbas Kamel, and Presidential Advisor for Financial Affairs Major Gen. Mohamed Amin.

ALSO- EEHC, EGPC taking out loans for power plant maintenance + mazut imports: The Egypt Electricity Holding Company (EEHC) has reportedly taken on a EGP 10 bn loan from National Bank of Kuwait Egypt to carry out power plant maintenance, Asharq Business reports, citing two sources familiar with the matter. Meanwhile, Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) is reportedly looking to sign a EGP 10 bn syndicated loan agreement with 13 banks this month to finance mazut imports, Al Shorouk reports, citing banking sources it says are familiar with the matter. The syndicate, led by the National Bank of Egypt and Banque Misr, are currently reviewing the final agreements of the loan, the sources said.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

Another mixed bag of news on the Ukraine-Russia conflict: Russian attacks took place overnight in Ukraine, using 70 air-assault weapons, such as cruise and hypersonic missiles and Iranian-made drones. Ukraine’s air force claims to have intercepted 30 of the 40 cruise missiles and destroyed all of the 27 Shahed drones. Also, one of the Russian guided bombs has hit a blood transfusion center in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the attack an example of “Russian aggression,” as three people were killed, although the Kremlin has not claimed responsibility. CNBC, BBC, and the Associated Press all have the story.

** CATCH UP QUICK on the top stories from today’s EnterpriseAM:

• The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) hiked interest rates by 100 basis points on Thursday as it looks to tackle persistently sticky inflation.
• More improvement in July for business activity: The contraction in Egypt’s non-oil private sector slowed to its softest pace in nearly two years in July, suggesting “initial pointers of a recovery in market demand following a lengthy downturn.”
• SCZone one step closer to launching investment arm: The Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) has received cabinet’s approval to set up a joint-stock investment company named SCZone Istithmar.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS- The Enterprise Finance Forum is taking place on 18-19 September at the St. Regis Hotel in Cairo. This flagship forum is the latest in our must-attend series of invitation-only, C-suite-level gatherings that allow senior members of our community to openly and frankly discuss critical issues in key sectors of the economy.

TAP OR CLICK HERE if you want to express interest in attending. We’ll be sending out the first batch of invitations soon.

Do you want to become a commercial partner? Ping a note to Moustafa Taalab, our head of commercial, or fill out this form and we’ll be in touch.

STAY TUNED for more detail about our agenda.

MISSED THE ENTERPRISE EXPORTS AND FDI FORUM? The EnterprisePodcast has you covered: The Enterprise Podcast’s forum series has been bringing you audio recordings of what was said on stage at the Enterprise Exports and FDI Forum,which took place in May. Throughout, we learned lessons from some of Egypt’s biggest exporters on how Egypt can export its way out of a crisis. We heard everything from how to build an exports and FDI strategy, to identifying a foreign partner and tapping into a global supply chain.

WANT TO LISTEN? Head to: Apple Podcast | Spotify | Google Podcast | Anghami .

IT’S THE FINAL EPISODE- Our final panel of the day was, naturally, the most forward looking. Our panelists discussed how the companies — be they in age-old industries or emerging ones — have adapted to changes to better position their businesses for an uncertain future. We were joined by Nadia El Tawil, investment officer at pan-African private equity firm AfricInvest, Mostafa Bedair, CEO of Giza Seeds and Herbs, and Abdallah Sallam, CEO of Madinet Masr.

OUR FORUM SERIES CONTINUES NEXT SUNDAY WITH THE ENTERPRISE CLIMATE FORUM- Fresh off the heels of a successful COP27, we held our first forum to dive deep into the fundamentals of what we think is the world’s most important industry. The conversations ranged from exploring the business opportunities for Egyptian entrepreneurs, companies and startups in climate, to demystifying green hydrogen, and how we finance our green transition. And we did it all in the Grand Egyptian Museum.

*** It’s Inside Industry day —your weekly briefing of all things industrial in Egypt. Inside Industry focuses each Sunday on what it takes to turn Egypt into a manufacturing and export powerhouse, ranging from initial investment and planning to product distribution, through to land allocation to industrial processes, supply chain management, labor, automation and technology, inputs and exports, regulation and policy.

In today’s issue: We have our Manufacturer of the Month column, wherein we profile an industrial player with a manufacturing base here in Egypt. Manufacturer of the month is dedicated to looking at locally bred or international players to examine the success and challenges that came with being a manufacturer in Egypt, as well as their paths forward. Today, we speak to chemicals producer TCI Sanmar.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- We will be watching the mercury rise to 40°C during the day time and drop to 27°C in the evening, as per our favorite weather app.