The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is supporting the manufacturing industry in Egypt with a US$ 50 million loan to United Metals Company (UMC), a copper rod manufacturer. Copper is a key material and contributes to the green energy transition in Egypt and Africa.

Amid foreign exchange scarcity in Egypt and rising global commodity prices, including for copper, the Bank’s loan will finance the working capital of UMC, including for importing copper cathodes, which are key to the production of cables.

UMC is a subsidiary of Elsewedy Electric, an Egyptian industrial group that has a strong presence in Africa, Europe and Asia, and is listed on the Egyptian stock exchange in Cairo. Elsewedy Electric is one of the largest cable and electrical product manufacturers in the Middle East and Africa, with 30 production facilities in 14 different countries.

UMC was established in 1998, and is one of the leading producers of high-quality copper rods in Egypt and North Africa. Copper rod manufacturing is an important industry for the Egyptian and regional market, with export markets including Algeria, Ethiopia and Lebanon.

UMC will also benefit from a technical assistance package piloted by the Elsewedy Technical Academy, which will conduct a skills-mapping exercise and help to develop new learning programmes, including technical training courses for women and blue-collar workers.

Since 2012 the EBRD has invested more than €11 billion in 169 projects in Egypt, with almost 80 per cent of its portfolio in private-sector projects.