Good morning, wonderful people, and welcome to a busier-than-usual THURSDAY after news broke overnight that our neighbors to the east have signed-off on a long-delayed USD 35 bn natural gas export agreement.

We’d love not to do business with Zioland, but the facts are stark: Industry and households alike are hungry for natural gas, and this agreement locks-in a regular supply at a favourable price. It’s good for business, good for households, good for the wider economy — and could help boost export receipts, too. What do we use for a “hold your nose” emoji?

MEANWHILE- The Madbouly government’s policy maturity is on display this morning in a couple of stories, including an exclusive look at the type of incentives and regulatory fixes it hopes will help shift the tenor of our debt stock a bit more toward the “medium term” end of the spectrum. The Tourism Development Authority, meanwhile, deserves kudos for granting our friends at Karm Holding land for a 40 MW off-grid solar station that will help power tourism destinations. It’s the first time the TDA has allocated land for green power under the usufruct system.

AND- We have for you the demystification of that MTO for Alex Containers and color on the volume of FDI that officials here expect from Qatar over the next 12 months.

^^ We have all of this and more in this morning’s news well, below.

Happening today

It’s your last chance to head to the polls, with runoff voting in Egypt for the House of Representatives entering its second and final day today. The results will be announced on Thursday, 25 December.

BACKGROUND: President Abdel Fattah El Sisi called on the Elections Authority to review appeals filed by several candidates amid allegations of fraud in the first round of the parliamentary vote, setting up re-runs in 19 districts across Giza, Fayoum, Assiut, Sohag, Qena, Alexandria, and Beheira.

Watch this space

REAL ESTATE — The Madbouly government has started rewriting the rulebook for the North Coast. The New Urban Communities Authority is currently finalizing a master plan for a 400 km stretch of coastline extending from Marina all the way to the Libyan border, a senior government official tells EnterpriseAM.

Until that plan is complete, private developers can expect coastal plot allocations to be largely on hold, we were told. The move away from outright land sales to a long-term leasing model and public-private partnerships mirroring the Ras El Hekma template will mean the state will secure funds up front and take a cut from future revenues.

Why it matters: If you’re a developer, the rules of the game just changed. Goodbye land banking — you can no longer buy a plot, sit on it for five years, and flip it or build a few chalets. A long-term lease model will presumably require active work on-site and favors the kind of year-round integrated destination the government has been pushing for. But with pricing an open question, it’s unclear whether this is good news for smaller, less cash-rich developers who are already priced-out of the North Coast market.

What’s next? Survey teams are already on the ground in areas including Agiba, Marsa Matrouh, and around the Libyan border. Officials will be drip-feeding announcements to the market over the coming year, we’re told.

TAX — The Finance Ministry has an EGP 600 bn carrot it thinks might be able to tempt companies to cough up their late tax payment fees. The ministry is mulling a one-off partial waiver of late tax payment fees that could see 30-100% of penalties written off from companies’ balance sheets, which it says stand at around EGP 600 bn, two senior government sources tell EnterpriseAM.

Those who apply to pay their late fees earliest will be in line for the highest waivers under the proposed plan.

PRIVATIZATION: Naguib Sawiris may be pivoting away (for now) from the country’s cooling real estate market, but the state’s airport privatization push could be his next target. The country’s second-richest person said he’s forming a consortium with Italian partners to bid for the management and operation of the Hurghada International Airport, which began accepting bids last week (watch, runtime; 32:11). Luxor and Sohag airports may be next in his sights, he suggested.

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The Big Story Abroad

Oil traders are watching carefully this morning after Venezuela said it would have its navy escort oil tankers from port in response to US President Donald Trump’s naval blockade of the country’s oil industry.

^^ The must read: Oil rises as Trump's Venezuela blockade takes edge off global crudesurplus concerns (Reuters).

ALSO- Warner Bros Discovery’s board rebuked Paramount Skydance’s “inferior” GCC-backed offer and urged shareholders to accept Netflix’s bid. Netflix is offering less, but some pundits think the offer stands a better chance of passing regulatory muster as it would see WBD first spin off its cable TV assets, including CNN and Discovery.

AND- BP’s Murray Auchincloss is out as CEO after less than two years. He’s being replaced by Meg O’Neill, who’s coming in from Australia’s Woodside Energy. She’ll be BP’s third CEO in five years.

PSA-

WEATHER- Cairo is in for another windy day today, with the Egyptian Meteorological Authority forecasting stiff, intermittent winds sweeping the capital. Our favourite weather app says to expect a high today of 20°C in the capital city and an overnight low of 9°C.

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