French companies signed c. EUR 2 bn worth of contracts in fields ranging from energy to biometrics yesterday as French President François Hollande wrapped a two-day visit to Egypt. The only outstanding question at this point: Did two two sides reach an agreement on EUR 1 bn in arms sales, including at least two corvettes and a military communications satellite system? The contracts had been widely expected, but we’ve so far seen little news. Judging from this Reuters report and a story from La tribune we picked up yesterday, our hunch is that the satellite comms system agreement went through, but that the corvette deal is still the subject of talks.

GE signs a USD 250 mn substation contract in Egypt: GE announced the signing of a USD 250 mn contract with the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC) for substations in “Mostathmereen, Beni Suef Industrial, Ismailia East and Temay Alemdeed.” The substations will help connect 7 GW to the national power grid. “French components make up approximately 50% of the total project scope including the Gas-Insulated Substations technologies to be installed at the substations, which are manufactured and assembled in France. The project is being executed in a consortium with Rowad Modern Engineering” and is expected to create 50 permanent jobs and 1,000 indirect jobs domestically. All substations are expected to be completed by the end of 2017.

Energy agreements signed on Monday at the French-Egyptian business forum included one by French energy company Engie to import LNG in Egypt with EGAS, Reuters reports. Engie also signed a cooperation agreement for the development of renewable energy with Egypt’s National Renewable Energy Association and the Egyptian Electricity Transport Company.

Did Hollande just promise Egypt assistance on nuclear energy? President François Hollande indirectly hinted that France would help Egypt develop its civilian nuclear energy capabilities at a meeting with President Abdel Fattah El Sisi during the French-Egyptian business forum on Monday, Al Masry Al Youm reports.

Safran signed an agreement with the Egyptian government at Monday’s Egyptian-French business forum to provide and install biometric and document scanning equipment at 22 land, air, and seaports, Al Mal reports. The agreement will also see Safran Group help the government develop a system to issue visas to foreigners online. The company will supply the Egyptian Company for Tracking Services and Information Technology with fingerprint scanners and smart cards for EUR 218 mn and also be part of a project to upgrade national ID cards.

Nile, Gemini, Kanoo, and IFC to invest in AXA Egypt: Also coming out of the forum, AXA Egypt signed on Nile Holding Investments, which counts Onsi Sawiris as a majority shareholder, the OTMT-owned Gemini Holdings, Bahrain’s Kanoo Group, and the International Finance Corporation as shareholders, Al Borsa reports. Once details on ownership stakes are determined, the new shareholder structure will be solidified, which is expected to take place before the end of the year, said AXA Egypt’s CEO Hassan El Shabrawishi.

The GE, Safran Group, and Engie agreements were among the 20 listed in the official roster of agreements signed during President Hollande’s visit and published on the French embassy’s website in both French and Arabic. Some of these were noted during our coverage yesterday.

French investors are forgoing Egypt’s stock market for Sub-Saharan African and other North African markets because of the FX overhand and security and political risks that plague Egypt, several stock market experts tell Al Mal in a piece that delves quite deeply into the issue. Economists interviewed also added that most deals signed during the French president’s visit were not new investments, but came from French firms that already had a foothold in Egypt looking to expand.

Just when you thought the visit was going well: The French press is ripping into the Egyptian army band for “massacring” (run time 1:15) La Marseillaise, the French national anthem, when it was played for Hollande during his visit. Last year, the band welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin in asimilar fashion (run time 1:12). For reference, here’s what the French (run time 1:03) and Russian (run time 1:15) national anthems actually sound like.