Petrochemical production in Egypt is witnessing increasing interest from the government, in light of the great importance this sector represents in supporting the national economy.
Within this framework, Egypt announced today, Thursday, May 11, 2023, the developments of its large project, represented in an integrated industrial complex with international specifications for the production of petrochemicals.
This came during a meeting between the Egyptian Prime Minister, Dr. Mustafa Madbouly, and the head of the Suez Canal Authority, Lieutenant General Osama Rabie. To review the features of the huge project aimed at producing petrochemicals in Egypt, according to a statement published by the official Facebook page of the Egyptian Presidency of the Council of Ministers.
The statement, which was viewed by the specialized energy platform, said that the project will be implemented in cooperation with Anchorage Investments in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, whose founder and managing director, Dr. Ahmed Muharram, was among the attendees of the meeting.
An Egyptian welcome to private sector investments
At the beginning of the meeting, the Prime Minister expressed his welcome to the investments made by the private sector in the sectors of the national economy. In order to bring about the required comprehensive development.
He pointed out that this comes within the framework of the state’s drive to support the private sector and coordinate with serious investors, which the state is currently working on vigorously, according to the statement.
Madbouly stressed the need to ensure the availability of the necessary financing for the petrochemical production project in Egypt.
For his part, the head of the Suez Canal Authority, Lieutenant General Osama Rabie, gave an explanation about the project, saying that the head of Anchorage Investments had previously requested that the company enter into a partnership with the authority in order to establish a petrochemical plant, with investments estimated at $2.5 billion, provided that the project would be built on A land owned by the Authority in the Ain Sukhna area.
He pointed out that it is intended to export $1.5 billion in the first phase, and it is planned to complete the implementation of the project within 36 months, according to the statement.
Petrochemical production in Egypt
The official spokesman for the Council of Ministers, Ambassador Nader Saad, said that the meeting dealt with reviewing the features of the project through which the company seeks to develop an integrated industrial complex with international specifications, using modern technologies in the field of producing basic olefin (propylene) and a number of its derivatives.
He pointed to the establishment of the project in the industrial zone of the General Authority for the Economic Zone of the Suez Canal.
Saad said that it was pointed out during the meeting that the petrochemical production complex in Egypt contains a number of industrial units for the production of (propylene), derivatives and specialized chemicals. To achieve an increase in the added economic value of natural gas derivatives.
The company is also planning – according to Saad – expansion phases to produce other complementary products, pointing out that the project enjoys a strategic location and competitive advantage within the economic zone, which makes it an outlet to the African continent, the Middle East region, Europe and other countries. It contributes to facilitating trade and opening doors to new markets.
He added that it was also indicated that the project accommodates the growing regional and global demand for petrochemicals in the markets.
The role of foreign investment
The founder and managing director of Anchorage Investments, Dr. Ahmed Muharram, said that the government’s support for major investment projects, especially heavy industrial projects such as the petrochemical industry, comes within the framework of its strategy for Egypt to become a regional center for petrochemicals and energy, and what distinguishes this project from its contributions to the return on investment. Foreign investment and exports, in terms of the total investment volume of the project, which contributes to increasing foreign direct investment, and would also contribute to increasing Egyptian exports.
On the other hand, Dr. Mostafa Madbouly affirmed the government’s readiness to provide the necessary support and assistance for the project in all its stages. Whether with regard to issuing the golden license, or facilitating the necessary procedures and steps to expedite its implementation.
Attracting Dutch companies
On the other hand, the head of the General Authority for the Economic Zone of the Suez Canal, Walid Gamal El-Din, held many meetings and discussions, while he was in Rotterdam, as part of his participation in the World Hydrogen Forum, which is the largest event of its kind in Europe.
Jamal El-Din aims from his visit to attract Dutch investments in the industrial sectors targeted by the region with its strategic plan 2020/2025, and to discuss ways of joint cooperation between the two sides, in order to complete the intense activity that the Authority is carrying out to achieve the maximum benefit from its resources in order to achieve the goals of the global transition towards green energy. This was according to a statement published by the official page of the Egyptian Presidency of the Council of Ministers on Facebook.
Egyptian capabilities
The Chairman of the Authority reviewed the unique capabilities offered by Egypt through the Suez Canal Economic Zone as a major destination for the production and export of green fuel in the Middle East and its export to the continent of Europe.
This came during the first session of the forum, in the presence of Egypt’s ambassador to the Netherlands, Hatem Abdel Qader, the mayor of Rotterdam, Ahmed Abu Taleb, representatives of the Sovereign Fund of Egypt, the Renewable Energy Authority, representatives of the Egyptian Electricity Distribution Company, and officials of the “OCI” company, which is one of the first companies working in the field of green fuel inside The scope of the economic zone, as it implemented the first green hydrogen project within the industrial zone in Sokhna with a capacity of 100 megawatts, in partnership with Fertiglobe, Scatec and the Sovereign Fund of Egypt.
The Chairman of the Authority also held important discussions with the CEO of the Port of Rotterdam, to discuss ways of cooperation between the two sides in the fields of green fuel circulation, so that the green fuel path from the economic zone after its manufacture is destined for the Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands, in preparation for its arrival to all European markets, and also to activate the green corridor. From Singapore to the port of Rotterdam, passing through the economic zone of the Suez Canal, which is intended to be a corridor for supplying ships with green fuel.
The cooperation will include the exchange of experiences in the development of ports belonging to the Suez Canal Economic Zone through technical cooperation in the areas of digitization within the ports, in addition to increasing the circulation rates between the authority’s ports and the port of Rotterdam.
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