A look into "Start initiative" after 6 months of its launch

CAIRO – 29 March 2023: Since its inauguration, the National Initiative of Developing Egyptian Industry “Start” has secured 64 investment partnerships to establish industrial entities along with 23 foreign companies, which is expected to contribute to reducing the import bill and increasing exports by $16 billion.

 

Moreover, the initiative was able to localize 23 new industries for the first time in Egypt, such as the manufacturing of soda ash, silicon in the petrochemical sector, air conditioning and refrigeration compressors, central air conditioners, welded pipes, pharmaceutical raw materials and components of drinking water and sewage plants.

 

The Egyptian soda ash project, which was launched in January 2023, is expected to reduce the import bill by $5oo million annually

 

 

Eliminating obstacles for industrial factories

 

The “Start” initiative was keen on eliminating obstacles for industrial projects, such as the provision of industrial lands (with a total of 170 thousand square meters) and industrial units (with a total of 12 units) nationwide, in addition to coordinating with banks to provide manufacturers with the necessary documentary credits for the purchase of raw materials.

 

Establishing new projects

 

New projects were established through the “Start” initiative including Allweiler-Farid pumps, Allweiler-Farid engine factory , UPVC pipes factory and the heavy loaders project in cooperation with the Arab Organization for Industrialization, where 16 loaders were produced as a first stage.

 

In addition, the Fondi factory was opened in January 2023 in Sohag Governorate, which is the first factory in Egypt and the Middle East to manufacture Fondi.

 

On top of that, several factories have been established and are currently awaiting inauguration, such as the Light Vehicle Engines factory, which is considered the largest complex for light transportation means in Egypt and the Middle East and the Light House factory for lighting products.

 

Projects underway

 

Many projects are currently in the works, such as the raw pharmaceutical materials City project -the first of its kind materials in Egypt, the Nova project for components of water and sewage plants, the first of its kind in Egypt and the Middle East- the MDF wood panels project as well as the Start chemical company located in Gamasa’s industrial city.

 

Ensuring the competitiveness of Egyptian products globally

 

In light of the President's directives to raise the efficiency of the Egyptian product and targeting export to European markets, the initiative has started working on standardizing laboratories to accredit Egyptian household appliances internationally.

 

Moreover, the initiative was able to attract direct foreign investments and coordinate between investors and major international companies to sign joint manufacturing agreements, which guarantees the ability of the Egyptian product to compete globally.

 

 

Green hydrogen production

 

In light of Egypt’s national strategy for green hydrogen production, the initiative has contacted Total EREN, the French energy giant and the largest technology expert in the world in the field of green hydrogen for potential collaboration, along with Inara Company and Abu Qir Fertilizers and Chemical Industries. 

 

All the parties involved are currently undergoing negotiations to finalize the signing of the contract. The investment cost of the project is expected to reach $2 billion.