The Food and Industries Holding Company (FIHC) has abandoned plans to build a sugar factory and decided instead to build an airplane fuel factory, according to the FIHC chairman. Airplane fuel will be produced from molasses, which is a by-product of the sugar production process. The project requires a total capital investment of LE1.5 billion, and according to Beltone Financial, cited by an Egyptian newspaper, 60 per cent of the capital will be raised from sugar beet companies, including Delta Sugar, and 40 per cent from the Egyptian Petrochemicals Holding Company. The factory is projected to produce 50,000 tonnes of ethanol from molasses. Beltone asserted the project will be proportionate to the companies' sizes. Delta Sugar holds around 30 per cent of the sugar beet market, and therefore will hold around 30 per cent of the 60 per cent stake allocated to sugar beet companies, which is 18 per cent of the new entity. Beltone said it is unsure when the project will be finalised, but construction will not start before 1Q 2012. http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/26730.aspx
