Concrete Plus continues to execute diverse projects. According to Tarek Youssef, CEO of the company, Concrete Plus's total work portfolio by the end of the year will be EGP 60 bn. In an interview with Daily News Egypt, Youssef revealed the current volume of the company's operations, its future steps, his vision for the contracting sector, and the challenges facing this vital industry that affects the Egyptian economy. He also reviewed some of the company's most prominent projects currently underway and its recent successful on-time deliveries despite market challenges. He also revealed the company's key partners and the most prominent projects the company plans to deliver soon. Youssef added that the company sought EGP 14bn business volume by the end of 2024. Additionally, the company was awarded the execution contract of the high-speed train fences in cooperation with the Chinese company. Youssef disclosed that his company was working on 52 projects and it successfully delivered 14 projects. The company will complete 20 projects by the end of the year. He noted, "We are negotiating the implementation of a new factory for a global company in the spinning and textile sector with a workload of EGP 4bn. Moreover, we have a business volume in the hospital sector worth up to EGP 8bn. Concrete Plus reaching 55% in the finishing rates of the Mazarine project, and we are starting to deliver 274 keys in the project." He noted that the company has started delivering 274 units in the Mazarine project in New Alamein, is working on 52 projects and is in the process of delivering 14 of them, and the company succeeded in reaching a business volume of EGP 8bn during the current year compared to 5 billion EGP during 2023, which is a huge increase that reflects the confidence in Concrete Plus from the entities assigned the work. Mazarine project was launched on one million square metres, with a work volume estimated at EGP 13bn in three phases. Regarding the impact of the Ras El-Hekma development deal, he explained that this project will provide job opportunities for the construction sector for at least 15 years. Throughout the development of this massive city, Egyptian construction companies will have the biggest amount of work on diverse projects, providing a huge volume of business and adding to the expertise of Egyptian construction companies. "We are currently working on implementing 10 administrative buildings within the Urban Business Lane project, owned by Tameer, in a prime location in New Cairo. Additionally, we are developing 10 administrative buildings as part of the Art Life New Giza project, valued at EGP 4bn," he explained. It is necessary to eliminate any challenges facing Egyptian contracting companies before they go to work in foreign countries. The contractor's financial strength enables him to expand. Just as the government listened to the problems of the real estate development sector and granted facilitations to companies to face the economic challenges, there are demands from the contracting sector that need the government to listen to and settle and provide facilitations to support the continuity of contracting companies' work. He added that the company, like other contracting companies, has faced difficult challenges during the recent period due to the float and price differences, as well as the delay in the disbursement of dues in some cases, in addition to the requirements of subcontractors and suppliers for immediate payment instead of deferred payment. However, despite these challenges, Concrete Plus continues to carry out all the work assigned to it with quality and efficiency. Concrete Plus is actively implementing key projects, including infrastructure work for the "Future of Egypt for Sustainable Development" initiative, with projects worth 1 billion EGP. The company also secured contracts in the first half of the year, including EGP 500m in Sodic's "June" project in the North Coast, EGP 1.2bn for a high-speed train route, and EGP 2bn for maintenance workshops in Marsa Matrouh. Additionally, it's working on an EGP 4bn textile factory and other projects, with a portfolio worth EGP 35bn, expected to reach EGP 60bn by year's end. He stated that investment in infrastructure projects is an investment in the future. When you build a road or implement a power plant, you are not just thinking about the interests of the current generations, but also the future of the coming generations and attracting investments that ensure a safe and stable life and job opportunities for them. The rise in Egypt's road quality index from rank 114 to rank 14 is a translation of the strong efforts made by Egypt to implement a network of roads that connect all axes and cities. Youssef said that the quality of roads in Egypt has advanced in the global ranking from 118th to 18th worldwide. The company's volume of Concrete Plus' work has increased from EGP 5 to 8bn during the current year. The company is also working with Emaar Misr on the "Cairo Gate" project and will deliver 140 villas. The company is executing work worth EGP 1.5bn for the company. Youssef said that Concrete Plus owns shares on the Egyptian stock exchange worth more than 2 billion Egyptian pounds, the most prominent of which is Ezz Steel, in addition to the 1.3% stake it owns in "Act Financial". Engineer Tarek Youssef owns 16.27% of the shares of "Act Financial Consultancy", which was subscribed to through a public offering, where the subscription was covered 55 times. He added that the company succeeded in delivering 3 projects in Toshka worth 3 billion Egyptian pounds, all of which were agricultural projects, and the company has also completed infrastructure work in the New Administrative Capital and handed it over, noting that the company has delivered 14 diverse projects in the first half of 2024. He concluded that the company is implementing the Japanese Yazaki factory – the automotive electrical systems – with an initial investment of €30m, and part of the project has been implemented. The company is also studying two other factories, in addition to contracting with Raya to implement a regional data centre in west Cairo with investments of $90m for the Egyptian Telecom Company. The company has also contracted to establish a water lift station in the Eighth Residential District in the New Administrative Capital, worth EGP 1.5bn.
