Sidpec to launch $600mn-ethylene factor in Egypt’s Port Said late 2018

The Egyptian joint stock company Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals Co – Sidpec targets finishing the  launch of its factory for producing ethylene and its derivatives in Port Said city by the end of 2018.

Chairman Ahmed Helmy told Amwal Al Ghad Thursday that the new factory is established with investment cost estimated at US$600 million in cooperation with Chemical Industries Holding Company (CIHC) and Egyptian Natural Gas Company (Gasco).

He stated that the company is currently making the detailed procedures of the project to start the executive ones within the upcoming period. The factory is set to start operation during 2019 with the capacity of 200,000 tonnes annually,

Sidpec has received financing offers from National Bank of Egypt (NBE), Commercial International Bank (CIB), Banque Misr (BM), and Egyptian Gulf Bank (EGB) but it had not finished studying the offers yet, the official said.

Helmy added that Sidpec is expected to keep its 2015-sales at the same volume of the achieved sales in 2014 which was estimated at 3 billion Egyptian pounds notably after the crisis that faced the Egyptian economy recently in addition to the lack of dollar liquidity and power problems.

The unaudited financial statements of Sidpec showed that company’s profits have been declined by 8.5 percent within the first nine months of 2015, achieving profit after taxes estimated at 664.98 million pounds opposed to 726.37 million pounds at the same period of 2014.