Mankai may extend deadline for China-Egypt textile park on coronavirus fears

Chinese investment firm Mankai is seeking to extend the deadline for the first phase of the sprawling China-Egypt textile park project until the coronavirus outbreak starts to ease.

The outbreak of the coronavirus –  erupted first in China and later worldwide – has driven Mankai Investment to halt its roadshow to invite more investors to participate in the China-Egypt textile park.

The agreement signed with the Egyptian government in 2018 already gives Mankai a three-month grace period to have the first phase of the textile park ready for operation, said its chairman Ma Yaojin on Monday.

However, coronavirus impact is overwhelming on both Mankai’s roadshow plans or the Chinese investors’ intention to travel to Egypt and participate in the project any time soon, he added.

Besides, due to the increasing number of the coronavirus cases in Egypt, Chinese investors that had signed the textile park deals have concerns that may lead them decide whether to postpone or exit the project, Yaojin said.

The Armed Forces Engineering Authority had also postponed a meeting with Mankai until March 26 instead of earlier this month to assess what have been done so far for the first phase, which will see the operation of 141 factories, he added.

Located in the industrial city of Sadat between Cairo and Alexandria, the park will span over 3.1 million square metres. Factories at the textile park in will be included in the Qualified Industrial Zones (QIZ) protocol.

Before the outbreak of the coronavirus, Mankai had successively signed agreements with 80 Chinese and international firms to participate in the first phase of the textile park.