China’s Xinfeng Steel plans to build an industrial complex in Egypt

Chinese steelmaker Hebei Xinfeng Steel plans to build a $1.65 billion industrial complex in Egypt. This is stated in the message of the Ministry of Industry of Egypt.

The project aims to boost Egypt’s industrial potential and strengthen economic ties between the country and China.

The 3.75 million square meter industrial complex will be built in Ain Sokhna, the Suez Canal Economic Zone, in two phases over five years. It is expected to create about 8,000 direct jobs.

The first stage will see the establishment of four plants to produce automotive components, household appliances, standard fasteners (bolts and nuts) and hot-rolled steel coils. The second stage will see the construction of five more plants, including a cold-rolled coil production facility.

Xinfeng Steel itself will build a steel plant in Ain Sokhna with a capacity of 2 million tons of hot-rolled coils per year, Kallanish said. Sinosteel International Engineering & Technology has been appointed as the general contractor for the project. The company will be equipped with two 120-ton electric arc furnaces, among other things.

Xinfeng Steel’s Egyptian steel project was first planned in 2018. In 2020, the company announced its intention to produce both rebar and flat products there. However, a year later, the Chinese company withdrew its plan to produce long products.

It is planned that 70% of the new plant’s output will be exported, and later it will start producing car engine blocks.

Earlier this spring, the Egyptian government was studying a proposal by the Italian Danieli Group to create an integrated industrial steel complex worth $4 billion. It included the creation of facilities for the production of sponge iron, seamless steel pipes and flat products.