Egyptian Iron and Steel Company (HADISOLB), the country's largest public companies, is targeting lower losses by 62 percent throughout the financial year 2017/2018, the company said on Tuesday. According to HADISOLB's financial year 2017/2018 budget, the company is expecting a net loss of 153.22 million Egyptian pounds ($8.7 million), down from 401.610 million pounds in the financial year 2016/2017 budget. The company further added that it plans to generate sales worth 5.19 billion pounds during financial year 2017/2018, up from current financial year 2016/2017 sales of 2.4 billion pounds. HADISOLB turned into profitability during the second quarter of financial year 2016/2017, posting net profit of roughly 44.9 million pounds, according to the company's unaudited financial statements. Earlier, Egyptian Minister of Public Sector Affairs Ashraf El-Sharkawy announced in February plans to hold an international tender for restructuring HADISOLB soon. El-Sharkawy said HADISOLB's refurbishment plan includes a financial reform by increasing its capital through loans or current shareholders, and technical restructuring to outline the company's upgrading production needs, said in a press conference following a tour to the company's factory. HADISOLB, which was founded in the 1950s, for decades was considered the crown jewel of Egyptian heavy industry. In the 1990s, however, the industry was opened to the private sector which gradually built up a controlling share of the market, and whose firms proved more efficient than HADISOLB. Moreover, years of mismanagement crippled the company's performance and left behind huge financial problems.
