A new EGP 1 bn waste recycling project for Egypt? Egyptian Trade and Industry Minister Ahmed Samir met with KSA-based firm Al Bashayer Company to review the company’s plan to invest EGP 1 bn (USD 32.4 mn) in establishing a waste repurposing plant in Egypt, according to a statement released on Friday.

Part of a wider plan: Al Bashayer says it will leverage the know-how of an undisclosed German-based firm to upscale waste recycling operations in Egypt and plans to bring in more German-based developers to boost Egypt’s circular economy sector, the statement notes. Al Bashayer said its German partner would also look to invest in Egypt’s low-carbon energy sector, and Egypt’s trade ministry proposed the country’s industrial zone in Sadat City as a potential development hotspot.

IN OTHER EGYPT NEWS- Egypt and China signed a debt-swapping MoU on the sidelines of the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing last week and confirmed China's interest in funding development projects in the country’s agritech and renewable energy sectors, according to a separate statement. China did not clarify the type of financing it would earmark for Egypt-based projects in both industries.

Loan extensions are also in play: Egypt’s International Cooperation Ministry also confirmed during the bilateral meeting with the Chinese government that the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA) would extend concessional loans to fund the third and fourth phases of Egypt’s planned electric light rail train system, without detailing the value or tenor of the planned soft financing programs, the statement notes. Egyptian media reported earlier this month that China’s Eximbank would lend Egypt USD 400 mn for the third phase of the project.