MANUFACTURING-

Saudi cable manufacturer Al Mousa Cables is set to establish its first EUR 50 mn cable production factory in Egypt, Ashraq Business reports, citing an anonymous company source. The factory will span some 40k sqm in Tenth of Ramadan, with the first phase set to begin operating in mid-2025. The factory will have a production capacity of some 6k kg of specialized cables per month in its first phase, with the company targeting the export of 50% of its production to international markets, particularly North Africa. The factory, which is being launched in partnership with an Egyptian investor, will be self-financed.

TRANSPORT-

Four int’l consortiums have submitted technical and financial offers to develop Cairo’s Metro Line 2, with the Transport Ministry having formed a committee to evaluate the offers, Al Mal reports, citing anonymous sources. Three of the offers are led by French companies, including Colas Rail, Alstom, and TSO, with the remaining offer coming from China Railway Electrification Bureau (EEB).

The chosen consortium is expected to provide soft loans for financing the project’s foreign portion, which is expected to cost over EUR 600 mn. The planned upgrades — which are set to be implemented over five years — will improve signaling, central control, and station infrastructure, extending the line's lifespan by 25 years.

DEVELOPMENT FINANCE-

#1- The World Bank has extended its financial support for the country’s universal health ins. System for another two years, with the USD 400 mn support package extended until September 2026, according to a report (pdf) from the bank that brought to light a decision made in June. The project has so far disbursed USD 143.7 mn of the total amount since coming into force in 2021.

Remember: The second EGP 115 bn phase of the system will be launched in the next fiscal year, with five more governorates to be incorporated into the system over three years, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly told reporters during a recent weekly presser. The first phase covered Port Said, Luxor, Ismailia, South Sinai, Aswan, and Suez governorates.

#2- The African Development Bank is mulling EUR 50 mn in financing for development of the Abu Rawash wastewater treatment plant, according to a project report from the bank. The funds will cover some 35% of the required EUR 141 mn for the project, with the government covering the remaining EUR 91 mn.

The terms: The loan will have a total repayment period of 25 years, with a grace period of up to eight years. The interest will be calculated based on variable interest with a margin not exceeding 1%.

EXPANSION-

Eva Pharma has tapped a Saudi contractor to help it implement its USD 150 mn pharma research and manufacturing complex in the kingdom’s Sudair Industrial City, managing director of the local drugmaker’s Saudi cluster Amgad Talaat told Al Arabiya without disclosing the name of the contractor. The contractor broke ground on the project last month and the first of the complex’s five pharma factories is set to come online next year — all five factories will be operational by 2030.

Remember: Eva Pharma inked an agreement with the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones to build the complex back in 2023.

The company also has important milestones coming up that it will hit locally, with the company set to start producing insulin locally this month and start locally producing the raw material needed for the production of medicine for autoimmune diseases at a later stage, Talaat said.

HOSPITALITY-

#1- Beach Safari is set to launch an EGP 2 bn integrated tourism project, dubbed Downtown, which chairman of the company’s board of directors Boshra Ghaly claimed will be the largest of its kind in Marsa Alam in comments to Shorouk News. The project — whose construction is expected to kick off in March — will span 120k sqm and feature shopping malls, casinos, water parks, a wellness hotel, and sports facilities.

#2- The government has proposed a 264-acre tourism investment project under a usufruct agreement in Giza, with the government interested in building hotels and resorts in the area, according to a government document seen by Shorouk News. The move is part of a broader push to attract private sector investments to the tourism sector through usufruct agreements and public-private partnerships.

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