Jamal Bin Theniyah, chairman of the UAE’s Emaar Properties, stated that they are planning to invest over 900 billion Egyptian pounds in the Marassi Red Sea project in partnership with Saudi Arabia’s City Stars Group.
Egypt has completed a major investment deal worth $18.5 billion with partners from the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia to build a large complex on the Red Sea coast.
The agreement was announced on Sunday at the Cabinet headquarters in the New Administrative Capital. It was signed in the presence of Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and other senior officials.
Jamal Bin Theniyah, chairman of the UAE’s Emaar Properties, stated that they are planning to invest over 900 billion Egyptian pounds in the Marassi Red Sea project in partnership with Saudi Arabia’s City Stars Group.
The project is expected to create about 170,000 jobs, including 25,000 permanent positions, once it begins operations. It will cover 10 million square meters. Hassan Sharbatly, vice chairman of City Stars, said the project stands out for its planning and design.
Madbouly stated that the project shows the government’s commitment to promoting tourism and urban development. He highlighted these as his primary goals and mentioned that the project will have a top-tier yacht marina, affirming that the government has a role in this effort.
Emaar Misr for Development, the Egyptian branch of the company, told the stock exchange that it is collaborating with Sky Towers for Real Estate Development for a project with Golden Coast for Hotels and Resorts. They did not share details about ownership or when the project will be completed.
Emaar, the largest publicly traded developer in the UAE, has already invested heavily in Egypt, including projects such as Uptown Cairo and the Marassi resort on the Mediterranean coast. It mentioned that Emaar Misr wants to invest an additional $1 billion in 2025, on top of the $20 billion already pledged since it entered the Egyptian market.
This deal comes as Cairo puts effort into attracting Gulf investment, aiming to secure $42 billion in foreign direct investment this year. This aligns with “Egypt Vision 2030,” which aims to establish the country as a global tourism and investment hub and increase annual tourist arrivals to 30 million by 2028.
In other news, Qatar is also in talks to invest $3.5 billion in a tourism project on Egypt’s Mediterranean coast. This would be the latest initiative to support Egypt’s economy from the Gulf.
The agreement for developing land in one of Egypt’s most desirable tourist regions may be finalized by the end of 2025, as indicated by sources familiar with the discussions.
That 2024 agreement has been crucial for Egypt as it deals with a two-year economic crisis made worse by the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. As Israel’s ongoing conflict with Iran potentially increases pressure on Cairo, it has the urgency of wanting consistent foreign investment. As a result, Egypt’s dollar bonds have fallen, its currency has depreciated, and the stock market has experienced its largest decline in five years.
The Egyptian and Qatari officials have not responded to requests for comments. Previously, in April, the two countries announced their plans to collaborate on a $7.5 billion investment initiative for Egypt over an undetermined timeframe.
This deal would further establish the Gulf state’s role in helping Egypt recover economically. The government is working to reform its import-heavy economy after receiving a $57 billion bailout, which also had support from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Union (EU). Egypt has signed an agreement for a development project along the Red Sea, worth 900 billion pounds ($18.5 billion), as announced by the government. This agreement comes as Egypt continues to attract interest from Gulf investors.
