Company to acquire almost 1 million sq. m. in New Cairo by end of October CAIRO: Sixth of October Development and Investment Company (Sodic) shareholders approved Monday a LE 1.1 billion capital increase to finance the acquisition of 984,900 square meters of land, including a 858,500 square meter plot in New Cairo on Road 90 adjacent to the new American University campus and the Katameya Dunes project. Sodic Director of Business Development Ahmed Badrawi says LE 590 million of the funds will go toward the New Cairo land acquisition, with the rest to be set aside for development of the land and the company s other properties in the Sheikh Zayed district. We see it as being the new urban town center for Katameya, Badrawi told The Daily Star Egypt. The company s general assembly approved a plan to raise the money through a 9 million share private placement at LE 100 per share and an additional 2 million share private placement to current shareholders at the same price per share. In a statement, the company said 25 percent of the 9 million share offering, or LE 225 million have already been paid by investors with the balance due to be received by the end of the month. Badrawi says a mixture of local and Gulf investors have committed to the investment, but it s largely Gulf foreign money coming in. Private placement was chosen as the method of increase, he says, because the money had to be raised by an Oct. 30 deadline to acquire the land, he adds. Sodic officials expect the population of New Cairo to exceed 3 million in 2016. The company plans to develop the acquired land to provide residential, retail and office services on a five-year construction schedule to be initiated by the second half of 2007, says Badrawi. We have been a very dormant company for a couple of years now, he says. Last year, there was a change in ownership. This year, there was a change in management. And I think this capital increase shows a change of philosophy. Sodic's to-be-acquired New Cairo land will add to one of the country s largest real estate developers, with land possessions already entailing 6 million square meters in Sheikh Zayed. Nearly 2 million square meters in the district have already been developed as an upper-scale residential compound, Beverly Hills, with development of the remaining 4 million square meters to be launched in the first half of 2007. Pending completion of the capital increase, the company s paid-up capital is set to be raised to LE 2.69 billion divided over 26.9 million shares.
