UK Export Finance, the UK’s export credit agency, is committed to funding trade deals with Egypt worth up to £500 million, and has £2.5bn of financing available for projects in Egypt, according to a British embassy press release on Sunday.
The UK’s trade envoy to Egypt, Jeffrey Donaldson MP, and UK Export Finance CEO Louis Taylor, arrived in Cairo on Sunday to meet with Egyptian officials and businessmen for talks on bilateral trade, the statement said.
The delegation will review projects such as the Suez Canal Economic Zone, the Tahrir Petrochemicals project in Sokhna, and Smart Village in Alexandria.
“Taylor comes to Egypt with the promise that UK Export Finance can underwrite prospective UK-Egyptian trade deals with up to £500m in financing or insurance, money that could directly help the Egyptian government or businesses gain access to world-class good and services provided by British companies,” the statement read.
UK Export Finance (UKEF) provides financing and insurance for British companies doing business overseas to make sure they get paid by importers.
“The UK is a global leader in many of the sectors for which Egypt has greatest demand, including transport and infrastructure, and UKEF can help Egyptian buyers access UK goods and services through its innovative, flexible and competitive financing terms,” Taylor said.
The meetings will be attended by Prime Minister Sherif Ismail, Trade and Industry Minister Tarek Kabil, Military Production Minister Mohamed El-Assar, Investment Minister Dalia Khorshid and Petroleum Minister Tarek El-Molla.
London has created a new Ministry of International Trade to expand global commercial ties for the UK as it exits the European Union in the coming years, according to the statement.
“The past few months have seen many enquiries from British companies wishing to do business in Egypt and their interest highlights the significant opportunities that are available across a range of Egyptian commercial sectors,” Donaldson said.
The volume of trade between Egypt and the UK is over £1.5bn, UK ambassador to Egypt John Casson said. British investments represent 40 percent of Egypt’s foreign direct investment inflows.
“Britain’s interest is in helping Egypt build a strong, dynamic economy that provides jobs and opportunities for all Egyptians,” Casson said.
“We are proud to be Egypt’s biggest investor and of our trade worth over £1.5 billion per year. But we are hungry for more and to seize the opportunities that Brexit will give us to forge new opportunities,” Casson added.
