Arab Finance:Experts and officials revealed Shipbuilding industry Marine and River Transport in Egypt stated that Egypt aims to reach 60% of the local component of shipbuilding.
During the international forum and exhibition for industry, which was held from November 25 to 27, they stressed that there are a number of challenges facing Shipbuilding industry in Egypt The most important of which is providing incentives to investors in the field of shipbuilding, including providing industrial land for the construction of arsenals on the coasts.
The volume of investment in the shipbuilding industry
For his part, Rear Admiral Engineer Ibrahim Jaber Al-Desouki, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Shipbuilding and Repair Industry Division of the Federation of Industries, said that the shipbuilding industry is one of the industries with huge investment and labor-intensive, as the volume of investment in the shipbuilding industry globally reaches about 240 billion dollars, which is evidence of the The size of this industry is growing, and China, Korea, and Japan are among the largest manufacturers in the world, pointing out that the volume of shipbuilding investments in Egypt is only $200 million.
Al-Desouki explained that there are national companies that entered to contribute to the manufacture of ship hull components, which provided 20% of the manufacturing needs that Egypt imported in this field, and that Egypt aims to reach 60% of the local component of the ship industry in Egypt, noting that there are steps The government is serious about ship manufacturing and repair, and the results are tangible on the ground. But there are obstacles in the way of marine maintenance companies, estimated at one hundred and twenty companies, which are companies owned by the Suez Canal, the public sector, and the private sector.
The shipbuilding industry in Egypt is still in a growth stage
El-Desouki stressed that the competition between the Egyptian product and the imported product is still in the growth stage, so we focus on some specific sectors in the ship industry, such as service vessels, fishing, and tourist yachts, and that we in Egypt have excellent opportunities if they are exploited properly, the first of which is our proximity to a large number We own regional and international marine units, so we can provide many services to them, especially in the course of the Suez Canal.
Al-Desouki pointed out that one of the most prominent obstacles and challenges is raising the Egyptian flag on Egyptian ships, but work has been done on this matter, and the Senate approved important amendments to the maritime transport law two days ago to solve this problem, and there are also challenges related to the work of small maritime transport companies, small arsenals, and the work of ports. Riverine.
There must be incentives for investors in the shipbuilding industry
Al-Desouki stressed that if we need to attract investors to build ships, we must create incentives for investors in the field of shipbuilding, including providing industrial land for the construction of arsenals on the coasts, noting that there is an important role for the national feeding industries in reviving and maintaining marine unit industries. The imported component entering this industry increases, and the use of modern technologies plays a major role in reducing production costs and making more quality products.
He explained that the law determining fees on ships has provisions that need to be developed, especially with regard to ships coming for maintenance, and the entry and exit of ship crews is not an easy matter, and requires a lot of facilitation of procedures, in addition to the legal problems as well, which oblige arsenals to work only during the day and not to work. At night, which reduces production capacity, pointing out that there is a demand for quick approvals for the installation of electronic and wireless devices on ships. Land should also be provided by the state to investors in the shipbuilding industry, and the crisis related to the conflict of government jurisdiction over lands for the shipbuilding industry should be resolved.
Increasing demand for investment in river transport
For his part, Engineer Osama Al-Desouki, General Manager of the Arab Contractors Arsenal in Al-Masara at the Arab Contractors Company, stressed the importance of river transport in light of the state’s directions to strengthen and develop it, as it set specific goals to strengthen this sector, and this is what the marine and river arsenals tried to work on, including the Arab Contractors’ arsenals in Al-Masara. And Ismailia.
He explained that the Maasara Shipyard is currently making an effort to build modern river units to serve the transport and tourism sector on the Nile River, in addition to efforts in dredging the course of the Nile River to accommodate deeper submersibles that serve larger transport units, in addition to developing legislation that codifies the operation of river units. There is a trend from the state to industrialize Components locally, which reduced the import bill that the state had to bear, and this is an unprecedented renaissance in the field of marine unit industries.
He pointed out that there is an increase in demand for marine unit industries in Egypt, and evidence of this is the large number of orders in exchange for production capacity, which is evidence of customer confidence in the finished Egyptian product, especially in this large industry. We also work with the factories of the Ministry of Military Production to supply machines. And equipment necessary to operate marine units.
The Director General of the Arab Contractors Shipyard added that there are trends towards sustainability and the manufacture of marine units that take into account the environment and reduce carbon impacts on the environment and climate, and this is what prompted us to use engines that have a lower environmental impact and are more efficient, and other components.
He stressed that there are some obstacles, and these obstacles are being resolved in a phased manner, including, for example, working on a smart tracking system on the current course of the Nile, establishing modern sidewalks on the Nile, dredging the river course, and raising the height levels of bridges above the Nile to transport larger goods, which is what drives this industry. To grow and increase the demand for river transport services
He explained that there is currently a great demand for investment in river transport, and in the coming days we will have a river taxi operating from Shubra to Helwan, which is a taxi with a capacity of 4 to 8 people, stressing the need for there to be an infrastructure in Egypt that can accommodate investment in this field.
Engineer Nasser Rajab Abu Al-Majd, Regional Director of the French Ship Registration Authority, said that the challenge facing the shipbuilding industry in Egypt lies in the presence of industrial capabilities to manufacture many components needed by marine units, but it has not yet obtained the required international accreditations that qualify it to compete globally and push the local product to global competition. With export, pointing to the role of the French Ship Registry Organization in its attempts to govern products and production systems in a way that supports the industry, including the Egyptian industry, many of which Engineer Nasser Ragab believes are promising and deserve to find their rightful place in the market. International.
He added that the number of naval units manufactured over the past years is large, so we must build on this success.
The role of banks in supporting national industry
For his part, Dr. Imad Farag, Head of the Small and Medium Enterprises Group at the National Bank of Egypt, stressed the importance of the banks’ role in the process of making the industry a success, noting that during the flotation process in 2016, instead of exploiting this flotation to support the industry, we moved to intensify imports from abroad, until we entered There was a currency crisis over the years and we were forced to float later, most recently in March 2024.
Farag explained that the group is working on two projects: contract agriculture and contract industry, which were launched by the National Bank of Egypt.
He stressed that imports in Egypt are still very large and have a negative impact on many citizens, but the Egyptian industrial sector has benefited strongly from the flotation.
Farag added that the contract industry project is a financing product provided by the National Bank through an agreement with the five largest manufacturers in Egypt in the production of electrical appliances, to nominate a number of small manufacturers in Egypt who are reliable in their production, as the bank undertakes to provide all financing for the operational process, and transform those factories into Specialized factories, and thus they can produce in large quantities, access the export market and compete with imported products. This is the same idea that East Asian countries have followed, and they have achieved great successes in the industrial sector.
He pointed out that the contracting industry has succeeded in gaining great acceptance, and the National Bank has participated with the “Ibdaa” initiative by helping them solve the problems facing the industrial sector, the most important of which are licenses and paperwork, and they have technical experience in directing these factories, indicating that the National Bank has been able Reaching a financing portfolio for small and medium enterprises of about 177 billion pounds, and the share of the industrial sector alone is about 45%. We also have a plan to double this number in the coming years, with an interest in developing the agricultural sector to reach the size of the industrial sector.
At the conclusion of his speech, he stressed that the banking sector will play a major role during the coming period, and the National Bank is open to providing all support to the industrial sector, and certainly providing assistance to the river and maritime transport sector to achieve Egypt’s interest.
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