The Finance Ministry is readying EGP 40 bn worth of public-private partnerships (PPP) within the next four months, the head of the ministry’s PPP unit Ater Hanoura told EnterpriseAM. The eight projects — currently equivalent to nearly USD 800 mn — include desalination plants, wastewater and industrial sewage treatment facilities, electricity substations, and waste recycling projects as part of the government’s broader efforts to expand private sector involvement in development initiatives, Hanoura added.

Six projects are already open for bidding by both local and international investors, Hannoura added. These include power distribution stations, a sludge recycling plant in Abu Rawash, and wastewater treatment plants, with a combined investment value of EGP 19 bn. These six are part of a larger pipeline of 12 projects worth a total of EGP 61 bn. He noted that 4-8 companies have submitted prequalification applications for each of the current tenders, including both local and foreign firms operating in infrastructure.

Hanoura had previously announced that the government plans to launch tenders worthUSD 3.2 bnby the end of 2024. These include 15 desalination plants with a total cost of USD 3 bn, two of which — one in Dabaa and the other in El Hammam — will be tendered in 4Q 2024 at a combined value of USD 210 mn. The government also plans to launch a tender for a wastewater treatment plant in Sixth of October City worth USD 95 mn, an investor service center valued at USD 10 mn, and 22 schools nationwide at a total cost of USD 60 mn before year’s end.

But PPPs to build schools are on pause until the Education Ministry finalizes land allocations, Hannoura told us, adding that the unit is ready to issue tenders as soon as suitable plots are secured. He clarified that delays to earlier PPP tenders were due to administrative reasons and unrelated to funding or investor appetite.

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