Egypt’s Minister of Public Enterprises Sector Hisham Tawfik and Chinese Ambassador to Cairo Liao Liqiang have held a meeting to discuss joint cooperation on localising electric vehicle (EV) production technologies in Egypt.
The meeting was held in light of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi’s directives to maximise Egypt’s production of technological components used in the EV industry.
During the meeting, Tawfik stressed the strong, historic relations Egypt and China have enjoyed, which have witnessed remarkable growth in the past few years.
The minister pointed to the ongoing contact between Egypt’s Al Nasr Automotive Company and China’s Dongfeng Motor Company for the annual production of 25,000 EVs.
The meetings between the two sides come in preparation for the start of EV production in Egypt before the end of 2021.
Tawfiq noted that the Egyptian government is looking to localise the production of technologies used in the EV industry. At the same time, this shift to Egyptian-made technologies would see an increase in capabilities to source locally produced components, by transferring factories from China to Egypt.
Tawfiq added that his ministry is looking to make Al-Nasr a centre for the electric car industry, not only in terms of production, but also as an agent for a number of Chinese companies. This would take place in partnership with the private sector, to supply some models of electric cars other than those that will be manufactured in Egypt.
For his part, Liao affirmed the depth of the relations between Egypt and China, as well as the continuous progress in cooperation across various fields, most recently in the face of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Liao noted that Chinese companies are keen to encourage further cooperation with companies affiliated to the Ministry of Public Enterprises Sector to serve the common interests between the two countries. They are also looking to support Egypt’s efforts to shift to clean energy, whether in the production of electric cars or the use of natural gas.
