Back to the complete issue
Tuesday, 15 November 2016

UK commits further investments following IMF agreement

BP will invest some USD 13 bn in Egypt before 2020, a sum over and above the USD 30 bn it has committed to date, the UK embassy in Cairo said in a statement released overnight that also reveals additional details on the USD 12 bn IMF loan package and makes clear that Britain made certain Egypt committed to making good on the arrears it owes energy producers as a condition of the facility.

Message from the English: We like you. More than the IMF likes you. Now pay our IOCs: The statement reads in part: “UK investment dwarfs IMF support with USD 30.5 bn investment flows … to Egypt since 2011 and a strong pipeline of recent announcements. The past month, has seen three major British companies — Vodafone, Unilever and GlaxoSmithKline — invest a total of EGP 3.785 bn in Egypt, while BP has invested approximately USD 30 bn in Egypt to date, with plans for a further USD 13 bn before 2020.

UK pushed for social protection, inclusion … and paying the oil companies: “The UK’s Executive Director’s intervention [at the IMF executive board level] led a particular focus [in conditions attached to the IMF loan] on ensuring social protection, inclusion, and creating a positive climate for investment as the key fuel for Egypt’s economy long-term.” The embassy’s statement said the UK “particularly welcomes” Egypt’s “commitment of an additional 1% of GDP towards protecting the poorest citizens from rising inflation, new measures that will increase female labour force participation, and the plan to clear outstanding arrears to International oil companies.”

Quoth the embassy: “Investors globally have noticed and will be reassured to know that the Egyptian Government honours its commitments.” Sadly, we can’t mock the world-class, tone-deaf condescension, because they’re right. Happy Brexit, y’all.

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.