IDA to reexamine higher fees for industrial licensing
IDA to take a second look at higher fees for industrial licensing: IDA to The Industrial Development Authority (IDA) is said to be reexamining a new set of higher fees it issued last week amid complaints from businessmen and investors, the head of Parliament’s SMEs Committee, Mohamed El Morshedy, tells Ahram Gate. The IDA — which upped the fees it charges investors and manufacturers for issuing licenses and other services — was tasked with revisiting the move after angry investors complained to Trade and Industry Minister Tarek Kabil in a meeting, according to Morshedy, who expects some charges to be reduced in order to accommodate small businesses. Investors associations had sent a formal complaint to the Ismal Cabinet claiming the move was bad for business. Fees for amending industrial registries jumped to EGP 3,800-37,770, while fees for issuing temporary licenses increased to EGP 4,700-23,450. Fees are determined based on the size of the business or project. It’s unclear when the IDA intends to make a decision.
Meanwhile, the IDA is reportedly tendering a total 3 mn sqm to investors and industrial developers this year, a source from the authority tells Al Mal. 2 mn sqm will be located in Borg El Arab and another 1 mn sqm will be tendered off in Upper Egypt. The IDA is expected to issue an official map of its land tenders for 2018 this month. In related news, the IDA has received five offers from different companies looking to set up iron manufacturing plants, Abdel Razek said, without naming the companies.
One project it isn’t happy about is China’s CGCOC construction group’s industrial zone in New Alamein City, whose MoU it signed with the Housing Ministry. The IDA says the agreement violates a recently-passed law that makes the Industrial Development Authority (IDA) the sole entity authorized to allocate land for industrial zones, IDA head Ahmed Abdel Razek said on Thursday, Al Masry Al Youm reports. The IDA has raised its concerns with the Housing Ministry and the two sides are working on resolving the issue.