China’s Rox Motor signs deal to build cars in Egypt

• Egypt makes car production a priority
• 50% of Rox vehicles for export
• Fresh incentives for Chinese companies

China’s Rox Motor will produce its own branded cars in Egypt under an agreement signed with Ezz Elarab & Elsewedy Capital Holding (ESAF) in Cairo.

Industry minister Khaled Hashim, who oversaw the deal with Rox, said it reflects the success of the national strategy for the automotive industry in Egypt.

“After years of intensive efforts to present visions and plans to convince global companies that Egypt is the ideal regional hub for investment, we are now witnessing an influx of major international companies for direct investment and the establishment of genuine partnerships,” he said.

The minister said car production is among the top priority industrial sectors targeted for development within the framework of the “national automotive industry development programme”, which targets the production of 100,000 cars by 2030.

In bourse statements, ESAF CEO Mohammed Saleh said the company is planning to double investment in the car industry to around EGP10 billion ($192 million).

He said ESAF, which already has production facilities at the 6th of October city near Cairo, would produce 5,000 vehicles annually in partnership with Rox Motor.

“Nearly half of the production will be exported to foreign markets. Production will begin in the second half of 2027 and it will be doubled within three years,” he said, adding that the targeted percentage of local components ranges between 45 percent and 52 percent.

Last week, the industry minister unveiled an industrial strategy with an export target of $100 billion in 2030. He said the six-pronged strategy concentrates on seven key industries including cars, garments, food and pharmaceutical industries, electrical and engineering equipment and electronics.

Chinese companies are already among the largest foreign investors in Egypt, with projects covering industry, textiles and clothes, chemicals and services.

In April, Chinese investors offered to build an international logistics and trade city in Egypt at a cost of about $2 billion.

• China’s Rox Motors to produce EVs in Abu Dhabi
• Volkswagen explores Egypt as production hub
• China’s Geely opens Mena’s first car assembly plant in Egypt

Last week, China National Tire and Rubber Corporation said it would invest $550 million to build a new tyre manufacturing project in Egypt.

The facility will be located in the Amreya district of Alexandria adjacent to an existing factory, which will be expanded and modernised, the Egyptian government said.

Although China has already invested more than $8 billion across Egyptian industries, Cairo is rolling out fresh incentives to attract further investment, Hassan El-Khatib, the minister of investment and foreign trade, said in November.

He told an Egyptian-Chinese investment forum in Cairo that the ministry has begun enforcing new rules allowing Chinese companies to use the yuan when establishing branches in Egypt.