A government document obtained by Daily News Egypt revealed that Egypt plans to sell its stakes in several public and private assets by June 2024, aiming to raise $5bn from the divestments. The document stated that the government intends to sell 20% of the Ministry of Finance's stake in AlexBank, a subsidiary of Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo, and 45% of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology's stake in Vodafone Egypt, the country's largest mobile operator, to a strategic investor. Sources told Daily News Egypt that the Qatar Investment Authority is close to finalizing the deal to buy the government's stake in Vodafone Egypt next month. The document also outlined the government's plan to list the Canal Mooring & Lights Company on the Egyptian Exchange before the end of this year and to offer one of the power stations to strategic investors before the end of September. Other assets that the government plans to sell include the wind farm in the Gabal el-Zeit region, which is scheduled to be sold next October, the National Company for Producing and Bottling Natural Water (Safi) to be sold by December, and both the wind farm in the Zaafarana area and the Siemens power station in Beni Suef by June 2024. The government also plans to sell a water desalination project which includes 21 plants, of which four plants are expected to be completed in the first half of next year. The government had previously appointed HSBC to obtain the approval of German lenders to complete the sale of the Siemens station in Beni Suef, which is part of the government IPO programme that includes 32 companies. The government also aims to sign several major contracts in the field of green hydrogen before the COP 28 climate conference this year and to attract four international companies in the industrial sector through the Investment Authority this year.
