MINING-

ASCOM subsidiary offloads 35% of Ethiopian gold project to Canadian miner: APM Investment Holdings, a subsidiary of EGX-listed ASCOM, has sold its 35% share in the Ethiopia-based gold mining project dubbed Kurmuk Gold Project to the Canadian gold producer Allied Gold Corporation (AGC) in exchange for 11.5 mn shares in the latter and USD 65 mn, according to ASCOM’s filing to the bourse (pdf).

The details: AGC shares were valued at USD 3.01 apiece, which puts the whole transaction at almost USD 100 mn, according to the disclosure. The USD 65 mn will be paid in three installments between 30 September 2024 and 30 September 2027.

INVESTMENT-

To quench our thirst for gold: Gold bars and coins manufacturer Gold Era is looking to set up a 1k sqm, EGP 1 bn gold manufacturing facility in Cairo next year, CEO John Luca said during a presser yesterday, Al Mal reported.

About the company: Founded in 2020, Gold Era is an Egyptian joint-stock company, with branches across Egypt, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia, with future plans to step into the Omani and Qatari markets next year.

DEBT-

NBE is seeking EBRD loan for SMEs: The National Bank of Egypt (NBE) is currently in talks with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to obtain a USD 50 mn loan to support financing to agricultural projects and SMEs, according to Al Mal.

OUTSOURCING-

Egypt cements its name as a leading global outsourcer. Egypt came in third on Ryan Strategic Advisory’s Offshore BPO (business process outsourcing) Confidence Index for 2023. The index measured BPO leaders’ confidence in the country’s labor market, infrastructure, BPO ecosystem, and political and economic stability, among a number of other metrics. Egypt and the Czech Republic both came in third with a score of 83.8%.

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