Egypt’s Suez Canal to offer ships fuelling and catering services
Egypt’s Suez Canal to offer ships fuelling and catering services. Egypt’s Suez Canal Economic Zone will offer new services to ships including fuelling and catering from the first quarter of 2023. The new services will be offered at Port Said and Suez in the northern and southern regions of the canal respectively, while as many as 20 to 25 services will be available for ships transiting Sokhna Port, including medical evacuation and marine supplies.
- It is worth mentioning that Egypt is facing a historic opportunity to transform into a global center for supplying ships with green fuel, as Egypt is considered one of the most promising markets for the production of hydrogen and green ammonia in the world.
In addition to its important strategic location for the movement of trade between East and West during its possession of the most important global navigation channel, the Suez Canal, which passes through which 10% of world trade movement. The transformation in the maritime transportation sector to use clean energy will be one of the most important investment opportunities to be exploited by Egypt, as the global maritime transport sector, led by major shipping companies, led by Maersk, is turning to use clean technologies in transportation to keep pace with the development process and reduce emissions resulting from the use of conventional energy in addition to the lower prices of green energy compared to fossil fuels. (Zilla Capital)
- The gov’t is in favor of a more flexible FX rate for the EGP “if necessary,” Finance Minister Mohamed Maait said
Maait was speaking with reporters on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank annual meetings. His comments echo previous statements by Planning Minister Hala El Said. The EGP has continued to inch down against the greenback in recent days and weeks and has lost around a quarter of its value against the USD so far this year. The IMF executive board has still not released its public meeting schedule. The body would have to approve any new assistance program for Egypt. (Reuters)
- Moreover, an assistance package from the IMF is in the “final confirmation” stage, Maait said
The finance minister is quoted as saying officials have reached an agreement on all aspects of the package, but he stopped short of giving details or confirming that the size and structure of the facility have been nailed down. Egypt is pushing to tie up a crucial financial package from the International Monetary Fund at annual meetings in Washington this week, hoping to stem a currency crisis that has restricted imports and sparked market unease over foreign debt repayments. (CNBC Araibia)
- In addition, Maait stated that Egypt prepares for Yuan-denominated bonds issuance
The Egyptian government is preparing for issuing Yuan-denominated bonds. Egypt welcomes receiving loans from international commercial banks, adding that the country is seeking to diversify financing sources. Egyptian citizens should not shoulder all the burdens of the global economic crisis. Additionally, Maait revealed that the government is working on solving the issue of piled-up goods at ports, adding that some are being released to warehouses outside the ports. (CNBC Araiba)
- Egyptian expats can now import new cars and get a tax refund
Egyptian Cabinet approved a new draft law allowing Egyptian expats and their families to have one personal-use vehicle imported to Egypt without paying customs duties or taxes, including the value-added tax (VAT). This will make it easier and cheaper for expats to import new cars and will aid Egypt in raising foreign currency amid the ongoing FX shortage. Recent CBE figures show that Egyptian foreign reserves declined over the past few months. (Bloomberg Asharq)
- If an Egyptian expat who has a valid foreign residency permit and foreign bank account pay a cash amount in foreign currency transferred from abroad to the bank accounts specified by the Ministry of Finance, they will get a full rebate on all the customs and taxes fees they paid
The draft law states that the cash amount transferred in favor of the Ministry of Finance will be returned to the expat after five years from the date of payment at the value of the local currency at the time of withdrawal. The exemptions under the new draft law will only be allowed for a four-month period starting from the day when the law comes into effect. (Bloomberg Asharq)
- Egyptian Supply Ministry, CBE coordinate to offer LCs to wheat importers
Egyptian Minister of Supply and Internal Trade Ali El-Moselhi stated that he coordinated with the governor of the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) Hassan Abdalla to offer the required letters of credit (LCs) for wheat importers. The recent steps taken by the government will control the market and prices of both wheat and flour over the upcoming period. On October 9th, El-Moselhi said that the Russian-Ukrainian war added 24 billion EGP in additional costs to Egypt’s bread subsidies. (Al Mal)
- TAQA Arabia launches largest solar power plant in Sharm El-Sheikh
TAQA Power, a subsidiary of TAQA Arabia, has begun the operations of the largest solar power plant in Sharm El-Sheikh. Built on an area of 250,000 square meters (sqm), the plant has a production capacity of over 42 gigawatts-hour a year. Managing Director of TAQA Power Sami AbdelKader noted that the project has been completed in a short time with a total investment of 250 million EGP. The project is set to reduce carbon emissions by nearly 500,000 tons throughout its lifespan of up to 25 years. (Arab Finance)
- EGX-listed Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals (Sidpec) wants to fully acquire subsidiary Egyptian Ethylene and Derivatives Company (Ethydco) through a share swap
Sidpec’s board will discuss the acquisition during an extraordinary general assembly meeting on Thursday, 20 November. Sidpec already owns a 20% stake in Ethydco, making it the company’s second-largest shareholder after the Petrochemicals Holding Company, which holds 21%. Remaining shareholders include Gasco, Al Ahly Capital Holding, the National Investment Bank, Banque Misr and Nasser Social Bank. If the acquisition goes through, it will give both companies the chance to boost their revenues and increase their production capacity. (Al Mal)
- CI Capital, Misr Capital to combine businesses; remain separate entities.
CI Capital Holding for Financial Investments (CICH) revealed that it will only combine business with Misr Capital across some activities, while both companies remain separate. The business combination process is not completed yet. This disclosure comes as a response to the recently published news in media claiming that both CI Capital and Misr Capital would be merged soon into one entity under the umbrella of Banque Misr. On October 10th, CI Capital announced that its subsidiary CI Asset Management launched Misr Equity, an investment fund for shares with a cumulative return. (EGX)
- Egyptian fintech startup Telda secures 20 million USD seed funding
Egyptian fintech startup Telda raised 20 million USD in seed funding from a group of investors, including American multinational technology conglomerate Block. Global Founder Capital led the financing round, while US-based venture capital firm Sequoia Capital participated. Telda announced that it will use the funding for expansion and product offerings. Founded in Cairo, Telda offers peer-to-peer payment services to Egyptian youths. Among the founders of the startup was the co-founder of Swvl Holdings. (Bloomberg)
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