The Clap
Sources speaking to CNBC Arabia stated that the government is preparing to sell a stake in ELAB, Egyptian Drilling Company, & is reopening negotiations over Qatar’s sovereign fund potential acquisition of Vodafone Egypt, with the latter coming from sources speaking to Almal newspaper.
What
The government is negotiating with strategic investors to sell a 49% stake in Egyptian Drilling, which is a petroleum drilling contractor. Most of these investors are reportedly from the UAE.
In ELAB’s case, the government is reportedly looking to sell a 40% stake in the EGX & to strategic investors but didn’t specify how they will be divided among them.
As for Telecom Egypt’s stake in Vodafone Egypt, the former reportedly wants to hold on to its stake due to its significance to total revenues.
So What
Egypt is in a race against time, with the IMF’s review of Egypt’s reforms coming up & one of the reforms being the privatization of state-owned assets. Several reports have signaled that progress in the program has been slow so far.
Now What
The government wants to finalize the deal for the Egyptian Drilling Company by Q3-2023 and finalize the deals for Vodafone Egypt & ELAB within this month, as per the sources.
