Korean auto firm set to sign agreement on locally assembled EV microbuses this week: State-owned Engineering Automotive Manufacturing Company (EAMCO) is set to sign a cooperation agreement with South Korean auto parts maker Myoung Shin to locally produce electric microbuses “by the end of the week,” Hapi Journal quotes Public Enterprise Minister Hisham Tawfik as saying in its print edition. The signing is set to coincide with South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s visit to Cairo from Wednesday to Friday, Tawfik is reported as saying.

Myoung Shin will work with local firm BrightSkies on the EV microbuses, Tawfik is quoted as saying. The Korean firm will produce the bus’ chassis, while BrightSkies will cooperate with EAMCO to supply the control systems, power units and engines under an agreement signed in November. The ministry at the time said that the 80% locally sourced microbuses were set to be prototyped within a year.

Our search for a new EV partner is also on track: The government is still in “advanced” talks with two Chinese companies to partner with El Nasr Automotive to locally produce electric cars, Tawfik added. Negotiations with Chinese auto firm Dongfeng to locally assemble its E70 cars collapsed in November. The minister said earlier this month that El Nasr had narrowed down its list of possible partners to two from seven.

Details are being finalized on component prices — the point on which El Nasr and Dongfeng failed to find agreement — as well as the EVs’ target selling price, factoring in production and marketing costs. The partnership will be announced as soon as one of the Chinese companies agrees to all the government’s terms in writing, Tawfik said, without disclosing an expected timeline. If both companies sign off on the conditions, the government would pick the best firm, Tawfik said. Earlier this month, he said final contracts could be signed by March.

Egypt plans to see its first locally assembled EV in 2023, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi said in an address to the World Youth Forum last week. The government will invest at least EGP 450 mn to roll out the infrastructure required to make EVs viable on Egyptian roads, led by industry leader Infinity, which will set up 6k electric vehicle charging points across 3k stations nationwide.