GAC Motor could be the latest Chinese automaker to set up production facilities here: Chinese automobile manufacturer GAC Motor plans to invest USD 300 mn to set up a car manufacturing plant in Egypt to serve both local and export markets, according to a cabinet statement. The plan was announced by General Manager Feng Xingya during a meeting between the General Authority for Freezones and Investment head Hossam Heiba and a number of Chinese players focused on expanding Chinese investments in Egypt.

ICYMI- We heard back in September that Auto Jameel — GAC Motor’s local agent — would produce the first locally-manufactured GAC models on the market, with plans to assemble 2-3 models and manufacture 10-15k vehicles per year. The news came on the heels of Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly’s offer to give GAC Motor special incentives and a golden license to expand production to Egypt.

Oppo also has big plans for Egypt: Smartphone manufacturer Oppo said it plans to make Egypt its second largest global production hub after China. The company in October said it aims to increase local production from 70k phones per month to 500k.

And ZTE reiterated its commitment to expanding here to capitalize on growing demand for telecom infrastructure. The telecommunications equipment manufacturer inked an MoU in September to locally manufacture a number of products, including fixed network terminals and optical network distribution products.

It’s been a busy few weeks for Chinese investments — we’ve seen announcements of new factories from GS Global Sourcing, Kinlead Innovative Materials, Guangdong Hongxin Textile, Top New Garment Group, and Xinxing Ductile Iron Pipes

And there’s more to come: Egypt will hold meetings with the Chinese business community in Beijing and Shanghai next month. After that Cairo will host the Egyptian-Chinese Investment Forum in July. Egypt is looking to boost Chinese investments in automotive, building materials, textiles, electronics, renewable energy, data centers, and AI, Heiba said.

DATA POINT- Some 2.8k Chinese companies currently operate in Egypt, with total investments exceeding USD 8 bn, according to data from GAFI.

Tags: