Back to the complete issue
Sunday, 26 February 2023

Egypt buys 240k tons of Russian wheat. PLUS: News from EBRD, USAID and more

COMMODITIES-

More Russian wheat incoming: GASC purchased 240k tons of Russian wheat in last week’s international World Bank-backed tender, the Supply Ministry said Thursday.The state grains buyer said it paid USD 317.50 per ton on a cost and freight basis in a statement picked by Reuters. The wheat is scheduled to arrive between April 1-15 in five shipments and will be paid for at sight.

REMEMBER- This is GASC’s third international grain tender so far this year and the third to be funded with a portion of the USD 500 mn loan that the World Bank agreed to extend the country last summer. All three tenders appear to have been awarded to Russian suppliers.

SUEZ CANAL-

EBRD kicks off second phase of SCZone digital transformation project: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) launched the second phase of its program to help digitize operations at the Suez Canal Economic Zone, the bank said in a statement over the weekend. The second phase of the program will overhaul the application process for more than 60 kinds of approvals, registrations, and permits investors may need to operate in the SCZone, as well as fully automating and digitizing the zone’s new one-stop shop for investors.

CABINET-

More USAID governance money: The cabinet approved a draft presidential resolution adding an additional USD 19 mn to a USAID grant to the government to improve economic governance, according to a statement. USAID’s five-year economic governance activity (EGA) program began in 2020 and was initially expected to cost around USD 40 mn.

NBFS-

Nice Deer x Misr Finance: Insurtech startup Nice Deer will offer short-term finance to medical service providers under an agreement with Misr Finance for Financial Services, according to a press release (pdf). “This will help eliminate delays in medical expense reimbursement, encouraging collaboration with insurance companies and accelerating the growth of the health ins. industry in Egypt,” it said.

Enterprise is a daily publication of Enterprise Ventures LLC, an Egyptian limited liability company (commercial register 83594), and a subsidiary of Inktank Communications. Summaries are intended for guidance only and are provided on an as-is basis; kindly refer to the source article in its original language prior to undertaking any action. Neither Enterprise Ventures nor its staff assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, whether in the form of summaries or analysis. © 2022 Enterprise Ventures LLC.

Enterprise is available without charge thanks to the generous support of HSBC Egypt (tax ID: 204-901-715), the leading corporate and retail lender in Egypt; EFG Hermes (tax ID: 200-178-385), the leading financial services corporation in frontier emerging markets; SODIC (tax ID: 212-168-002), a leading Egyptian real estate developer; SomaBay (tax ID: 204-903-300), our Red Sea holiday partner; Infinity (tax ID: 474-939-359), the ultimate way to power cities, industries, and homes directly from nature right here in Egypt; CIRA (tax ID: 200-069-608), the leading providers of K-12 and higher level education in Egypt; Orascom Construction (tax ID: 229-988-806), the leading construction and engineering company building infrastructure in Egypt and abroad; Moharram & Partners (tax ID: 616-112-459), the leading public policy and government affairs partner; Palm Hills Developments (tax ID: 432-737-014), a leading developer of commercial and residential properties; Mashreq (tax ID: 204-898-862), the MENA region’s leading homegrown personal and digital bank; Industrial Development Group (IDG) (tax ID:266-965-253), the leading builder of industrial parks in Egypt; Hassan Allam Properties (tax ID:  553-096-567), one of Egypt’s most prominent and leading builders; and Saleh, Barsoum & Abdel Aziz (tax ID: 220-002-827), the leading audit, tax and accounting firm in Egypt.