The Ministers of Transportation and Public Enterprises Sector met at the Ministry of Transportation's headquarters in the New Administrative Capital to explore ways of collaborating on localizing the bus manufacturing industry in Egypt. The meeting was attended by the heads of several public companies and authorities involved in land transport and metallurgical industries. The main focus was on developing Nasr Automotive, a state-owned company that produces eco-friendly buses according to the latest global standards. The Minister of Transportation, Kamel El-Wazir, stressed that the ministry is committed to implementing a comprehensive plan to localize the manufacturing of all modes of transportation, including increasing the local component ratios and achieving self-sufficiency for national companies in producing various types of buses (electric, gas, diesel). He added that this would enhance the impact of this industry in Egypt, save foreign currency, create thousands of jobs, meet local market needs, and eventually expand exports to make Egypt a specialized industrial base in this field. He also highlighted that the ministry has outstanding companies operating in passenger transport, such as "Eastern Delta, Upper Egypt, Western, and Central," which are subsidiaries of the Holding Company for Maritime and Land Transport, SuperJet, and Acta. These companies are implementing ambitious plans for their comprehensive development and fleet renewal by benefiting from the local manufacturing plans of public and private sector companies. The Minister of Public Enterprises Sector, Mahmoud Essmat, stated that the continuous plan for development, modernization, and restructuring is ongoing across all subsidiary companies, which has positively affected performance indicators, maximizing returns from owned assets, and investing in human capital. He confirmed that Nasr Automotive has recently succeeded in concluding several deals to market its locally manufactured buses, which are in line with the state's strategy to localize the automotive industry and transition towards clean energy use. He also announced the commencement of the trial operation of these buses within the transport system in the New Administrative Capital in collaboration with the Ministry of Transportation. Furthermore, he affirmed the existence of a comprehensive plan to develop and rehabilitate Nasr Automotive, including upgrading existing production lines and adding new production lines to manufacture vehicles of various sizes. Currently, the company produces minibusses and has contracts for their supply to various entities and companies. He also revealed that there are positive indicators and advanced stages in negotiations with several international companies aiming to transfer and localize electric vehicle manufacturing technology. The meeting reviewed Nasr Automotive's current manufacturing capabilities and its comprehensive development plan, which includes producing various types of buses (electric, gas, diesel) according to the latest global standards. They also expressed their full support for this collaboration, which is expected to have positive outcomes in terms of enhancing the impact of this industry in Egypt, saving foreign currency, creating thousands of jobs, meeting local market needs, and eventually expanding exports. They also stressed the importance of localizing complementary and feeder industries for the bus manufacturing sector to create an integrated industry, as well as utilizing the incentive strategy for localizing the automotive industry, as approved by the Higher Council for Localizing the Automotive Industry. This strategy involves incorporating bus manufacturers and their related industries and adjusting incentive frameworks to align with the promising and emerging automotive industry in Egypt. They agreed to hold intensive meetings between relevant parties from both sides to activate this collaboration and to coordinate a field visit by the Ministers of Transportation and Public Enterprises to Nasr Automotive's production lines and facilities to support the localization of this industry.
