Egypt opens first phase of Ismailia Vaccines and Biotechnology City tomorrow

Good morning, friends. Tomorrow’s pricing of the state’s biggest share sale in years will tell us a lot about how foreign money now sees Egypt.

Our big story today: we saw this one coming. Back in April, we made the case for selling as much as 49% of Banque du Caire (BdC), the maximum the current rules allow. Earlier this month, a government official told us the banks running the offering had recommended going bigger after the roadshows, with the prospectus already leaving the door open to 45%. That’s now happening: Banque Misr is selling 45% of BdC instead of 30%, with the shares set to price at EGP 5.30 each, the top of the range, when the final price comes out tomorrow. What makes it more than a size story is who’s coming in: the EBRD and IFC have each signed on for up to 15.74% of the enlarged private placement, roughly 30% of the offering between them and triple what they were reportedly eyeing in August. The private books reportedly closed about 6x covered. Even so, two brokerages still think the stock is cheap, with fair values of EGP 6.55 and EGP 7.8 against the offer price.

At Dekheila, three partners have signed up to study a 273k sqm re-export and light-manufacturing hub in the port’s hinterland. By our read, freezone status will decide whether the study turns into a project.

MEANWHILE- The EBRD is taking 40% of a new Scatec platform that holds four of its local renewables projects, with the option to expand across the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean.

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A vaccine hub for Africa

Egypt’s vaccine city officially opens its first phase tomorrow. The inauguration of the Vaccines and Biotechnology City in Ismailia will take place on Monday, 26 October. The government expects it to draw some USD 150 mn in local and foreign investment, a senior government official tells EnterpriseAM. Health Minister Khaled Abdel Ghaffar has previously said the city should attract EGP 12 bn (c. USD 218 mn) by 2030. Parts of it are already up and running: the ministry said in April that construction on the first phase was complete and that several facilities, including the central filling building, had already started operating.

What it will make: The city should cover 20% of local demand for human and veterinary vaccines, with a large share of its output earmarked for export to more than 60 countries, the official says. It’s set to produce 140 mn human doses and 5.5 bn veterinary doses a year by 2030, rising to 690 mn and 11 bn by 2040, according to Health Ministry estimates. The 115k sqm site has 32 buildings, including three human vaccine plants and three veterinary ones, alongside R&D labs, storage, and filling and packaging facilities. Its first products will include basic human vaccines such as flu and polio shots. The project also includes an academy to train vaccine-manufacturing staff, and technology transfer through partnerships with global firms.

Why it matters: The city is central to the government’s plan to localize 50% of vaccine production by 2030, 75% by 2035, and reach full self-sufficiency by 2040. If the city covers only a fifth of local demand, by our reading, other producers will have to supply most of the rest of that 2030 goal.

Pharma investment is set to pick up in the coming years, from local players with foreign partners and from foreign firms that want a foothold in Egypt as a gateway to Africa, Ali Ouf, head of the pharma division at the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, tells EnterpriseAM. He says the city will serve the African markets covered by the eight recognition agreements Egypt has signed for its medicines, and could be used to research and make vaccines if new outbreaks emerge. Ouf credits the Egyptian Drug Authority’s new pricing rules with giving global firms a clearer basis for feasibility studies. He expects a USD 100 mn investment in a plant for pharma excipients to be announced in 1Q 2027. The government is also looking to localize biologics, cancer drugs, raw materials, blood products, and insulin, some of which cost patients EGP 100-200k, he says.

Crops on a plane

EgyptAir Cargo will fly fresh Egyptian fruit, vegetables, and other exports to the UK daily from 1 November, when its Cairo-Cardiff Airbus A330 freighter is scheduled to take off, according to the latest schedule filing. The airline announced the route at September’s El Alamein airshow and plans to run it through 27 March, but getting it off the ground has taken some shuffling: the start date has moved twice since the first schedule filing, from 30 October to 25 October, and then to 1 November. What was not disclosed: tonnage targets, the forwarders and retailers who signed up, and whether the service continues past 27 March.

Why it matters: The UK bought GBP 197 mn worth of Egyptian fruit and GBP 114 mn worth of vegetables in 2024. Sea freight from Alexandria or Damietta takes eight to 13 days to reach Britain, long enough for soft fruit to lose shelf life, which is why high-value perishables move by air. Fresh and processed farm exports hit a record USD 11.5 bn in 2025, accounting for roughly 24% of national outbound shipments.

PSA-

WEATHER- Cairo is in for a properly warm autumn Sunday, with a cool, misty start burning off by mid-morning, a high of 30°C, and a low of 20°C, according to our favorite weather app.

It’s a touch gentler in Alexandria, with a high of 27°C and a low of 19°C.

The big story abroad

Polar LNG under Russian influence? After resigning in September, former Polar LNG CEO Joel Riddle accused US-sanctioned Russian company Novatek of secretly funding the firm. Polar LNG is a USD 25 bn US gas export venture reportedly linked to an investor with connections to the Trump family. The company is repurposing a gas terminal in Alaska partially built by Novatek. Polar LNG saw mass resignations among its leadership, including Riddle, due to concerns about sanctions risk.

Musk, Kyiv split on Starlink usage: Ukraine announced that both the Starlink satellite network and its defense-oriented version, Starshield, are back at full capacity following a disruption that strained relations with Washington. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said Ukraine breached Starlink's terms of service by deploying the network to conduct offensive drone attacks, and that the workaround that allowed this was shut down last week.

Unrest rages across Europe: Protests have continued across several European countries, including France, Albania, Italy, Spain, and Portugal, despite tightened security and large police deployments. The protests have been attributed to social and economic grievances, including over pensions, housing, education, and corruption.