Another big-ticket Saudi investment in the works: Saudi Arabia’s Zamil Steel Construction — a subsidiary of Zamil Industrial — is planning to set up a new heavy metal structures factory in Egypt, Zamil Steel Egypt General Manager Khaled Saad announced earlier this week. The factory will initially meet local demand for metal structures and at a later export over half of its output.

The nitty gritty: The new facility — to be set up in Sadat City — will have three production lines that will produce 36k tons of metal structures a year when running at capacity. It will be carried out in three phases over three years, Saad said, adding that the Saudi group will fully self-finance the project, with final investment cost to be decided early next year

The factory will help plug an important gap in the market: Heavy steel structures are in high demand across Egypt’s oil, gas and petrochemical sectors, which require structures with specialized specifications, Saad noted, adding that such structures are mostly imported into Egypt.

Zamil Steel Egypt already has a sizable footprint in the country: The company currently operates two factories in Sixth of October and Sadat City, with investments totaling USD 70 mn. Over its 25 years in Egypt, it has produced 1.2 mn tons of steel structures. Zamil Steel exports to 63 markets and has so far contributed to 7.4k projects across various sectors.

It’s already been a big year for Zamil Steel Egypt: The company is on track to produce 72k tons of steel structures by the end of 2024, with 40% set for export. The company has broken into Turkey, resumed exports to Morocco, and is looking to enter Benin next year, with plans to, at a later stage, expand to Europe, starting with Hungary.

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