Egypt's Tahrir Complex to be developed in 2 years with LE3.5B investments

CAIRO - 7 December 2021: The agreement signed with the winning consortium to develop and rehabilitate the Tahrir Complex included pumping investments of about LE 3.5 billion within two years from the date of the contracting company receiving the building, according to international standards, Minister of Planning Hala el-Said stated Tuesday.

El-Said added that Egypt is a rich country in many assets, including untapped assets, pointing to the Tahrir Complex, which was transferred to the Sovereign Fund of Egypt, where the best exploitation of this asset was studied through communication with a number of consulting companies.

She explained that a number of meetings were held with the developers, so that the Tahrir Complex, after its development, would become a mixed-use place that includes a hotel part, and an administrative and commercial part, while preserving the historical character of the building, according to a statement.

The minister added that there were a set of conditions and criteria that were taken into account regarding the companies applying to develop the building, such as the company’s financial solvency and its previous experience in developing  similar buildings to achieve the goal of developing the complex.

El-Said noted that there was a committee that included the ministers of tourism, antiquities and housing to set initial standards, and international expert houses were hired to study the best uses of the Tahrir Complex building.

Regarding the winning consortium to develop the complex, El-Said said that the sovereign fund succeeded, through the process of developing the Tahrir Complex, in attracting an investment consortium that enters the Egyptian market for the first time, which is the American consortium, which includes the "Global Ventures Group", the "Oxford Capital Group", and the "Al-Otaiba Investments ", after a bidding process aimed at attracting developers and partners from all over the world specialized in the rehabilitation and development of historical buildings, and were liquidated into three consortiums, at last, the American consortium won.

She pointed out that the importance of developing the Tahrir Complex comes due to its historical and symbolic value to the Egyptian people, as it is the most famous government site in downtown Cairo in Tahrir Square. 

The strategy of the Sovereign Fund in this regard includes developing the building to be of mixed use (hotel - commercial - administrative - cultural), and in harmony with the nature and development efforts undertaken by the state in the downtown area and Khedive Cairo, she clarified.