Egypt's government to establish a new fertilizer factory

Prime Minister Essam Sharaf has approved the establishment of the first integrated factory for the production of nitrogenous fertilizers in Egypt. A committee has been formed to prepare for the establishment of the factory and receive capital from Spanish, French and US companies for building the factory. Ayman Abo Hadid, Egypt’s agriculture minister, told Al-Ahram that the new plant will cost over LE1 billion, which is to be borne by agricultural cooperatives, national banks led by the Agricultural Bank as well public subscription by farmers. The factory will be built in Ras Sedr, west of the Sinai Peninsula, due to its proximity to required services and infrastructure. The factory’s production capacity will be around 2 million tonnes annually, to be directed toward supplying small farmers with subsidized fertilizers, especially during the high summer season. Abo Hadid did not specify an estimated date for completion of the factroy. The minister also added that the factory will work toward reducing overall price of fertilizers through ensuring its availability in markets and limiting imports. Abo Hadid also indicated that fertilizers produced in the factory will not be priced according to international prices. From ahramonline .