The General Authority for the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with an alliance of Spanish companies to develop the industrial area in East Port Said.
Nasser Fouad, the spokesman for the authority, told Daily News Egypt Thursday: “If we reach a final agreement with the Spanish alliance, we will allocate land to them on usufruct basis for 25 years, which can be increased to 50 years.”
According to a statement issued by the authority Thursday, the alliance, including a number of Spanish companies, will provide consultations in many fields, including energy, water desalination and residential projects.
Fouad noted that the authority signed a number of MOUs over the past period, which are yet to be activated. The authority gives other parties specific periods to submit studies for their projects, he said, pointing out that a failure to meet the terms on the company’s part leads to voiding the memorandum.
Ahmed Darwish, head of General Authority for the SCZone, said the alliance’s projects are worth approximately €8bn, to be undertakne over at least five years, according to a statement issued by the authority.
The Spanish alliance includes Grupo Enza, Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya, Cox Energy, and Safex Energy, among others.
Darwish noted that the memorandum is preliminary, but marks an important step that will allow the alliance to prepare the project’s model.
For his part, the general coordinator of the Spanish alliance, Ahmed Metwally, said the alliance seeks to study the investment opportunities in East Port Said, noting that the coalition includes major private and public companies.
