SCZone signs off on land contract for USD 2.6 bn methanol plant in Ain Sokhna
SCZone signs off on Ain Sokhna’s USD 2.6 bn methanol plant: The General Authority for the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) has signed a land use contract with a company jointly owned by Abu Qir Fertilizers, Helwan Fertilizers, and Al Ahly Capital Holding, to establish a methanol plant at Egypt's Ain Sokhna port and industrial complex, according to a cabinet statement.
The first phase of the plant is expected to be completed in 2025 and cost USD 1.6 bn, while the second and final USD 1 bn phase will take another three years, according to the statement. First announced over the summer, the plant aims to produce 1 mn tons of methanol and 400k tons of ammonia annually, a portion of which will be exported.
The state moves into methanol: Referred to in the cabinet statement as International Methanol Company, the company established by the Oil Ministry to build and run the methanol plant was formed in August under the name Misr Methanol. Abu Qir and Helwan each hold a 35% stake, and Al Ahly Capital holds the remaining 30% stake. The new entrant to Egypt’s petrochemicals industry joins Methanex, which for a decade has been Egypt’s only methanol producer.
Ain Sokhna is on track to become one of the largest petchem complexes in Africa: The SCZone in May signed a USD 7.5 bn agreement with the Red Sea National Refining and Petrochemicals Company to build one of the biggest petrochemical complexes in Africa and the Middle East, also in the Ain Sokhna industrial zone.
OTHER NEWS FROM INDUSTRY-
Oriental Weavers will invest USD 15 mn to upgrade looms and machinery in 2022, the company announced in a press release (pdf).
Turkish UPVC gets anti-dumping duties: The Trade Ministry will impose anti-dumping duties on Turkish imports of unplasticized polyvinyl chloride (UPVC) for a five-year period in a bid to protect the local industry, according to a ministry statement. The decision will come into effect once it’s published in the Official Gazette. UPVC is a building material used in place of wood in things like window frames, sliding doors, drains and plumbing.