Egypt Moves Ahead With Plans for $500 Million Tire Manufacturing Plant

CAIRO — The Egyptian government plans to tender a $500 million project to establish a passenger car and light commercial vehicle tire factory, aiming to meet local demand and reduce reliance on imports, according to an official document seen by Asharq Bloomberg.

Egypt needs about 500,000 tires annually and imports nearly 8 million tires each year at an estimated cost of about $1.25 billion. China’s Sailun is currently the only company operating in the passenger car tire sector in Egypt and is expected to begin production in the Suez Canal Economic Zone in the coming period.

The new factory is scheduled to be developed in the industrial zone of 10th Ramadan City on a 217-feddan site under a partnership with the private sector. The project falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of State for Military Production.

Last July, Mohamed Zada, assistant minister of industry for strategic industries, said Egypt does not have a passenger car tire manufacturing industry, despite the presence of factories producing tires for buses and trucks. Most existing facilities focus on tires for trucks and two- and three-wheeled vehicles, with the Pyramids factory, the largest in the country, having begun production about six years ago with private-sector investments of nearly 3 billion Egyptian pounds ($59.6 million).

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