South Korea eyes boosting water industry ties with Egypt

CAIRO – 2 November 2023: The Korea Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), in cooperation with the South Korean Embassy in Cairo and Korea Water Partnership, is organizing a conference and 1:1 business meeting with a group of 10 South Korean Companies in the field of water industry development between Egypt and Korea.

The trade delegation is visiting Egypt from 31 October to 2 November. They are specialized in the field of water industry and headed by Korea Water Partnership (KWP).

They are handling various items including gravity driven membrane system (GDM), carbon steel pipes, fittings and spool pieces with coating, urtlasonic flowmeter, turbo blower & compressor, battery-powered urtlasonic water meter, water supply pipe network solution, non-metallic sludge collector, under drain block system, PRSys Ubi-MBBR, air release & vacuum valve, combination air valves-dual body, surge relief valve, electric actuator, and water quality analyzer.

The main objective of the seminar and business meeting is to discuss the possibility of enhancing the cooperation in “project sector” with the relevant Egyptian ministries and authorities, especially Ministry of Housing & Utilities, Ministry of Environment, Holding Company for Water and Wastewater (HCWW), and Construction Authority for Potable Water and Wastewater (CAPW).

Also, KOTRA will arrange one-to-one business meetings for the Korean companies with around 20 prominent Egyptian companies at the Four Seasons Hotel on Wednesday, 1 November.

This event is a good opportunity for Korean and Egyptian companies to cooperate in the field of water industry.

With the cooperation of the Construction Authority for Potable Water and Wastewater (CAPW), the trade delegation will visit El-Gabal El-Asfar Wastewater Treatment Plant on Thursday, November 2 in order to see the largest wastewater treatment plant in the world in terms of capacity and cost. The visit will encourage South Korean companies to cooperate and invest in the field of water projects in Egypt.

South Korea and Egypt have been partners on the economic level since even before the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1995. KOTRA, which is affiliated with the Commercial Section of the Korean Embassy in Egypt, established a presence in Cairo in 1974, 21 years before the establishment of official diplomatic relations, and has been helping with the promotion of trade and investment between both countries, with many trade delegations coming from Korea to Egypt and eventually some of them decided to invest in Egypt.

The trade volume reached $3.1 billion in 2022 which is the second highest between the two countries.

It was mainly due to a dramatic increase of export from Egypt to Korea, the amount of which was $1.6 billion. The two main items were natural gas and naphtha, an increase of 705% and 107% respectively, compared with that of 2021. 

Other products exported from Egypt to Korea include sugarcane waste used in Korea to feed livestock, in addition to minerals, textiles, clothes, fruits and cement, etc.

Egypt imports from Korea, automobiles, synthetic resins, semiconductors, auto parts, and petrochemicals, some of which work as feeding items for Korean companies operating in Egypt.

In terms of investment, the cumulative amount of investment of Korean companies is $817 million as of the end of 2022. About 40 Korean companies are actively operating in Egypt, which include Samsung Electronics, LG electronics and Hyundai Rotem, etc.

Some Korean companies consider Egypt as a base for the Middle East and Africa, taking advantage of the strategic location of Egypt and its extensive FTA network. 

Finally, Mr. Sukho Lee, Director General of KOTRA Cairo, added “This event will enhance the opportunities for Korean and Egyptian companies to seek potential partners in the water industry”

“I am expecting the possibility of enhancing cooperation between South Korea and Egypt in field of “water industry” with the relevant Egyptian ministries and authorities, especially Ministry of Housing & Utilities, Ministry of Environment, Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA), Holding Company for Water and Wastewater (HCWW), and Construction Authority for Potable Water and Wastewater (CAPW),” said Director General of KOTRA Cairo Mr. Sukho Lee.

The total volume of the Korean investments in Egypt has reached around USD 845 million, as of June 2023. These investments were done by mostly large companies in the field of manufacturing sector like Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, and Hyundai Rotem, he added.

“I think that the future of cooperation between our two countries is promising. Egypt and Korea have been strengthening cooperation in many fields such as politics, economy, defense industry, and even culture.In particular, the two countries agreed to establish a comprehensive cooperative partnership in 2016,” Sukho Lee said.

During the Egypt-Korea summit held in January 2022, a MOU was signed for joint research on trade and economic partnership, and it is expected that the mutually beneficial relationship from trade to investment will be further strengthened, he contined.

Korean companies are investing in Egypt in many sectors, most importantly in the electronics, defense, transportation, chemicals, and textile industries. An agreement also was signed to supply 320 trains for Cairo metro lines. As for the execution phase, Egypt’s Ministry of International Cooperation signed the USD 460 million agreement with the Korean Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) to implement a project for co-manufacturing and providing trains for the Cairo Metro lines 2 and 3, he said.

South Korean companies are also involved in the modernization of the railways’ signaling systems, with a first phase from Nagaa Hamadi to Luxor and a second phase from Luxor to Aswan, he continued.

Sectors appealing to South Korean companies for investment in Egypt include electronics, transportation, defense, and infrastructure projects like water and wastewater projects. Other sectors include chemicals, textile, parts and materials and veterinary vaccines, among others, he said, noting that one of the main reasons why trade and investment relations are growing is that many South Korean Companies consider Egypt as a base for export to the Middle East, Africa, and Europe leading Korea’s cumulative investments in Egypt to reach around USD 845 million as of June 2023.