Egypt invites German firms to invest in green projects in SCZone

Egypt has invited German renewable energy companies to invest in green hydrogen projects across the country, Al Masry Al Youm reported on February 9. 

Egypt’s Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade, Hassan El-Khatib, called on German companies to take advantage of the promising investment opportunities available in the green hydrogen sector, particularly within the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), and to expand their investments in Egypt.

The remarks came during the seventh meeting of the Egyptian-German Joint Economic Committee. Seeveral frame work of agreements were signed by El-Khatib and Stefan Rouenhoff, Parliamentary State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. The two sides agreed to enhance cooperation through exchanging expertise in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), entrepreneurship, business facilitation, technology transfer, digitalisation of SMEs, and innovative financial tools for startups.

The meeting was attended by Mohamed El-Goski, CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI); Abdel Aziz El-Sherif, Head of the Commercial Representation Authority; and Ahmed Badawy, Head of Promotion Sector at GAFI.

During the discussions, both parties agreed to explore industrial investment opportunities, covering 28 promising industries. Egypt also offered a package of incentives for the industrial sector and provided informational booklets on Robbiki Leather City to encourage German companies to invest. Both sides exchanged updated laws and procedures related to industrial investment.

The Egyptian side invited the German business community to benefit from Egypt’s trade agreements with Africa, including the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and COMESA, as well as the Greater Arab Free Trade Area, enabling access to large consumer markets. Germany was also encouraged to support the EU-Mediterranean Partnership Agreement, particularly its rules of origin.