The Sovereign Fund of Egypt (SFE) will begin restructuring five military-owned companies ahead of their planned listing under recently-signed cooperation agreements with the military’s National Service Projects Organization and a consortium of local and international advisors, a cabinet statement reads. The firms are filling station operator Wataneya, bottled water company Safi, food manufacturer Silo Foods, fuel retailer Chill Out, and the National Roads Company.

When can we expect the offerings? The offerings will take place between this year and 2026, according to the timeline outlined in the statement — though it remains unclear which companies will be offered when.

Advisors: EFG Hermes and CI Capital will serve as financial advisors. Boston Consulting Group will act as a commercial and strategic advisor. Counsel is being provided by Adsero (Ragy Soliman and Partners) and Matouk Bassiouny & Hennawy, while PwC and Grant Thornton are on board for tax and accounting.

REMEMBER- Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly announced last year that the government would offer stakes through EGX listings in four military-owned companies in 2025.

Wateneya and Safi specifically have been slated for privatization for over four years. Despite attracting multiple suitors, previous attempts to sell stakes in the two companies have repeatedly fallen through.

We think we’ll see them trading on the EGX over the coming few months after Madbouly said the two companies will be offered on the bourse by mid-2025.

Silo Foods and Chill Out are said to make their IPOs towards the end of the year, according to the comments made by Madbouly in December. Then-planning minister Hala El Said earmarked Chill Out for a sale back in December 2023.

Expect to see more companies on the privatization chopping block soon, as a government source told us last month that the SFE is conducting a comprehensive review of the privatization program that could see it expand the program to 40-60 state-run companies.

IN CONTEXT- The government plans to transfer all state-owned companies to the SFE to boost their returns. The move will start with 370 profitable firms — over half of the total 709 owned by the state.

The international press also picked up the story: Reuters

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