IFC considers US$40M investment in Nile Sugar project to boost Egypt’s sugar production
IFC is reviewing a $40 million loan to support Nile Sugar’s expansion in Upper Egypt, aiming to strengthen domestic sugar production and reduce reliance on imports.
EGYPT – International Finance Corporation is considering a $40 million investment in a sugar beet project in Egypt aimed at strengthening domestic sugar production and reducing the country’s reliance on imports.
Documents reviewed by Ecofin Agency show that the private-sector lending arm of the World Bank is evaluating a senior loan to Nile Sugar Company, a privately held sugar beet producer operating under Orascom Investment Holding, which is linked to Egyptian businessman Naguib Sawiris.
The proposal has been under internal review for several months and is awaiting final approval.
According to project documents, the financing would be structured into two equal tranches of $20 million each. The IFC would provide one tranche directly, while the second tranche would be mobilised from third-party investors.
The loan would carry a seven-year maturity period, including a three-year grace period.
Nile Sugar Company was acquired in 2019 by Orascom Investment Holding in a transaction valued at 3.7 billion Egyptian pounds (US $71.8 million) at the time. The acquisition strengthened the group’s position in Egypt’s strategic agribusiness sector.
The proposed financing will support the development of 13,711 feddans (5,760 hectares) of farmland in Minya in Upper Egypt for sugar beet cultivation.
The project will also include investments in agricultural infrastructure, equipment and working capital. Part of the funding will be used to support seeds and agricultural inputs supplied to the company’s network of smallholder farmers involved in the supply chain.
The initiative forms part of a broader agricultural expansion programme overseen by the Egyptian Countryside Development Company, a joint initiative involving Egypt’s ministries of Finance, Agriculture and Housing.
The programme aims to develop four million feddans (1.68 million hectares) of desert land by 2030 in an effort to boost agricultural production, attract domestic and foreign investment and support sustainable development.
Nile Sugar Company operates a refinery located in Nubariyah along the Alexandria–Cairo desert road. The facility currently processes up to 11,000 tonnes of sugar beet per day and produces about 232,000 tonnes of white sugar each production season.
Egypt produced about 2.8 million tonnes of sugar in 2025, with authorities targeting 2.9 million tonnes in 2026. The increase would represent a national self-sufficiency rate of around 81 percent.
Despite the progress, the country consumes approximately 3.2 million tonnes of sugar annually, leaving a supply gap that authorities are attempting to close through expanded agricultural development and increased private-sector investment.
Sugar imports are projected to decline to about 1.5 million tonnes during the 2024–2025 season, compared with 1.8 million tonnes the previous year, reflecting a gradual shift toward import substitution.
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