The British company Actis has reached a preliminary agreement with the Sovereign Fund of Egypt to acquire the wind power plant in Gabal El-Zeit, which is included in the government's IPO programme, consisting of 32 companies, sources revealed to Daily News Egypt. The sources said that Actis' bid on the 580-megawatt station was one of 4 serious bids that Egypt received from local and international companies, including Siemens Gamesa and Orascom, in addition to another offer from an Italian company. The sources pointed out that Actis presented a good technical offer that includes a complete development of the turbines in the stations with the aim of increasing its production capacity after completing the acquisition. The sources added that the final procedures will start after the official announcement from the government. The project, which was implemented in cooperation with the Spanish government, consists of 3 stations: "Gabal Al-Zayt 1" with a capacity of 240 megawatts, "Gabal Al-Zayt 2" with a capacity of 220 megawatts, and "Gabal Al-Zayt 3" with a capacity of 120 megawatts. The Egyptian government announced its aim to collect $2bn in offerings during the past fiscal year. The proposals program is one of the pillars of Egypt's agreement with the International Monetary Fund, which seeks to enhance the role of the private sector and reduce the state's footprint in the economy. According to previous statements by the Prime Minister, it is intended to offer 25% of the companies included in the program within 6 months, which began last February, stressing the need to accomplish this with investment banks and specialized companies. In a related context, the British direct investment company Actis and Edra Power Holdings renewed their interest in purchasing the Beni Suef power station, southern Cairo. In 2019, the British private equity firm had officially submitted a letter of intent to acquire one of the three Egyptian power stations implemented by the German company Siemens in cooperation with Orascom Construction and Elsewedy Electric, intending at that time to acquire a stake greater than 51%.
