General Authority for the SCZONE, Walid Gamal El-Din.
During the first board of directors meeting for FY 2024/2025, the Chairman of the General Authority for the SCZONE, Walid Gamal El-Din, said the SCZONE's general surplus grew by 33 percent, reaching EGP 5.42 billion compared to EGP 4.08 billion in FY 2022/2023.
Gamal El-Din added that the total trading volume for the SCZONE ports grew by 43.14 percent, reaching 36.5 million metric tons of general non-oil cargo, compared to 25.5 million metric tons in FY2022/2023. The authority ports also handled 5,131,000 20-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) throughout FY 2023/2024.
The SCZONE Upcoming projects
Furthermore, Gamal El-Din said that due to the zone's promotional efforts throughout FY 2023/2024, 218 projects were given preliminary and final approvals in the industrial zone and ports with a total investment value of $5.12 billion.
He also noted that due to its efforts in enhancing the soil's quality and relevant facilities, Qantara West Industrial City signed contracts for six new projects, with seven other projects currently under study.
Qantara West, Gamal El-Din noted, hosts 15 projects, with investments worth $1.33 billion, on 1.57 million Square metres.
Moreover, he indicated that SCZONE has signed 15 agreements, to date, with major companies and international alliances under the umbrella of the green hydrogen projects. The zone, Gamal El-Din highlighted, also signed a binding agreement to export the entire production of the “Egypt for Green Hydrogen” project to Europe for 1000 euros per ton.
In addition, he said the SCZONE signed several Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) in June, including one with the Abu Dhabi Port Group, in coordination with the Ministry of Transport, to grant commitment for a roll-on/roll-off (RORO) terminal with a total investment of $25 million. The project also includes establishing a passenger and cruise ship terminal, with investments worth $5.3 million.
Moreover, SCZONE signed a usufruct agreement with the Turkish textile manufacturing company Eroğlu Egypt Ready-made Garments to establish a $40 million factory on 65,000 Square metres in the Qanatara West Industrial City. The project would create more than 3000 job opportunities.
Similarly, the board of directors of SCZONE approved Leomax company's project to assemble tractors and agricultural equipment, with a total investment of EGP25 million, to produce 1000 tractors annually. The zone also approved a three-phase project by the Emirati polyurethane production company Pearl Polyutherane North Africa with an investment value of $1.7 million.
Significant challenges
According to a report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in April, trade in the Suez Canal dropped by 50 percent compared to the previous year. This decline is attributed mostly to the Houthi attacks on vessels in the Red Sea area. These attacks have forced shipping companies to divert their vessels' route to the Cape of Good Hope, which witnessed a 74 percent surge in the volume of ships compared to the previous year.
Similarly, revenues from the Suez Canal have declined to $7.2 billion in FY 2023/2024, down from $9.4 billion in FY2022/2023, according to a statement by the Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA), Osama Rabie, on Thursday.
According to the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE), the canal receipts dropped by 7.4 percent during the first nine months of FY2023/2024 (July 2023 to March 2024), reaching $5.8 billion down from $6.2 billion in the previous year.
Presidential instructions to facilitate investment in SCZONE
President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi met with Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, Gamal El-Din, and the Chairman of the Administrative Control Authority, Amr Hosni, on Thursday.
During the meeting, El-Sisi instructed providing the necessary facilities to attract investments to the SCZONE. He also stressed the importance of economic sustainability and removing administrative obstacles that investors face. Furthermore, El-Sisi emphasized the importance of expanding industry and localizing it as a strategic goal for Egypt and a path to achieving development and progress.
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