New privatization program targets just in: Egypt aims to raise some USD 6.5 bn through the privatization of state-owned companies and assets by the end of the year, Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said at the Annual Arab Fiscal Forum in Dubai, according to a statement. The target refers only to finalized sales made during the calendar year, a government source confirmed to Enterprise.

ICYMI- The government secured about USD 5.6 bn between April 2022 and December 2023 from selling state-owned stakes in 14 companies, Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly said at a presser last year. There are 35 companies and assets currently on the privatization list, but a further 61 additional companies were identified by the government to be added to the list, according to unconfirmed reports from local media in January.

A large chunk of the USD 6.5 should be raised by June through stake sales of Wataniya, Gabal El Zeit wind farm, Port Said and Damietta Container & Cargo Handling companies, United Bank, and a Siemens-built power plant in Beni Suef, our source told us.

Still in the pipeline: Zafarana wind farm, which the government had said it will wrap up by the end of March. There has also been persistent talk of selling some or all of the state’s stake in a number of high-profile banks, including BdC (a perennial IPO candidate that could also go by stake sale), AlexBank, and AAIB.

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