FILE – Filling up natural gas – Wikimedia Commons/Andreas Geick
CAIRO – 13 October 2019: Egypt and Toyota Tsusho discussed on Sunday how the giant Japanese company can contribute to the government’s plans to manufacturing natural gas-powered microbuses.
During his meeting with President and CEO of Toyota Tsusho Mr. Ichiro Kashitani, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli emphasized Egypt’s keenness to best utilize its resources by reducing diesel exports’ expenses and transferring diesel-fueled vehicles to natural gas-powered ones or to bi-fuel vehicles that are capable of running on two fuels (natural gas and gasoline) through offering payment facilities.
Mabdouli further stressed that the transfer process needs to be implemented through manufacturing companies that working on Egypt’s soil, in order to enhance local manufacturing, and transfer expertise, according to a cabinet press statement about the meeting. He also ensured that the government is serious in its plans to implementing the transfer process through providing funding programs and incentives to encourage owners of old microbuses.
These ambitions go the lines with the government’s latest unveiled plan in August, aiming to turn 50,000 vehicles into gas-powered annually.
Mabdouli also stressed the government’s readiness to discuss the details of the implementation of the program and accelerate the process according to a specific schedule.
For their part, Toyota Tsusho delegation presented their proposal of “manufacturing high quality microbuses in a way that will meet the Egyptian government’s converting the fuel-powered vehicles.”
In a previous interview with Business Today Egypt magazine, Toyota Tsusho Kashitani explained his company’s strategy about using diversified fuels, based on the global trend to electrification, while maintaining an environment-friendly technology.
“In order to realize the fuel transfer plan by government, natural gas field development would be necessary to be accelerated and we are ready to support it by expansion of the offshore rig project as referred above,” Kashitani added during the interview.
To read the full interview with CEO of Toyota Tsusho Mr. Ichiro Kashitani, check this:
CAIRO - 21 September 2019: Being the trading arm of Toyota group, one of the largest Japanese companies, Toyota Tsusho Corporation seeks to expanding investments in Egypt's areas of natural gas, power and automobile.
The meeting was attended by Investment Minister Sahar Nasr, Japanese Ambassador to Cairo Masaki Noke and a number of Toyota officials and leaders.
The fuel prices experienced its final wave of increase in July, when Egypt applied its final tranche of gradual subsidy cuts. The subsidy scrap plan was part of a major economic reform program launched in Egypt including the introduction of the value-added tax (VAT) aiming to bridge the budget deficit.
Egypt's budget for current fiscal year 2019/2020 revealed the reduction of fuel subsidies to LE 52.96 billion, down from LE 89.07 billion in 2018/2019.
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