Cairo: EgyPulse – News Desk
Speaking at a press conference after inaugurating several projects in the zone, part of the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), Madbouly said the government had spent about EGP 15 billion ($485 million) on infrastructure and equipment to attract investors. “Without state spending on infrastructure and facilities, no investments will be made,” he said, adding that 40 projects worth $1 billion have already been established in the zone’s first phase.
The government expects the completed zone to host 50 factories, creating approximately 500,000 jobs and potentially generating $25 billion in annual exports. Among the factories inaugurated on Saturday were a $70 million Chinese-owned Hengsheng textile plant and a $40 million Turkish-owned Eroğlu garment facility.
The Qantara West Zone, situated on the Port Said–Ismailia road and adjacent to fertile Nile Delta farmland, was first conceived before 2011 but only began development in recent years. Established under a 2015 presidential decree, the zone is equipped with essential utilities – water, electricity, and sewage – as well as logistics infrastructure for warehousing, transport, loading, unloading, and packaging to support manufacturing and agricultural processing. The project is part of Egypt’s wider strategy to expand exports from $44.8 billion in 2024 to $140 billion by 2030.
