Egypt, Bechtel Discuss Means of Bolstering Cooperation

The meeting held between Molla and Jones in Cairo on Tuesday, May 12, 2021.
The meeting held between Molla and Jones in Cairo on Tuesday, May 12, 2021.
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Egypt, Bechtel Discuss Means of Bolstering Cooperation

The meeting held between Molla and Jones in Cairo on Tuesday, May 12, 2021.
The meeting held between Molla and Jones in Cairo on Tuesday, May 12, 2021.

Egypt’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek el-Molla discussed with President for Regions and Corporate Relations at Bechtel Corporation Stuart Jones means of bolstering bilateral cooperation on oil and joint projects.

Both sides also reviewed the latest developments in the Red Sea Petrochemical Complex project at the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), with investments estimated at about $7 billion.

They tackled the proposed action plan for the project’s implementation, in light of the principles agreement signed with the US company and the results of detailed feasibility studies for the project.

The US ambassador to Cairo, Jonathan Cohen, also attended the meeting, during which both sides signed a contract to assign the land on which the project will be built.

The complex project comes in line with the ministry’s strategy to expand value-added projects in the petrochemical industry and increase the production capacity of petroleum and petrochemical products to cover the needs of the local market and export the excess, Molla explained.

He stressed the importance of bilateral coordination to expedite the project’s implementation.

The participation of major international companies in the Gas Industry Advisory Committee (GIAC) at the East Mediterranean Gas Forum (EMGF), including Bechtel, indicates the importance of this committee and its role in liquefied natural gas (LNG) activity, Molla noted.

He pointed out that the GIAC provides the opportunity to define common goals and give confidence to all companies wishing to invest in the region by creating a balanced environment for investments.

Cohen, for his part, said the US-Egyptian relations are distinguished and historic in various fields.

He said the US is willing to bolster the investments of US companies in the fields of oil, gas and petrochemicals in Cairo.

Meanwhile, Jones affirmed that Egypt succeeded in providing an attractive investment environment for foreign investors, pointing to its increasingly leading role in the region, especially after launching the EMGF.



Türkiye's Central Bank Lowers Key Interest Rate to 47.5%

A girl sells plastic items to people in the Kadikoy district in Istanbul, Türkiye, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A girl sells plastic items to people in the Kadikoy district in Istanbul, Türkiye, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
TT

Türkiye's Central Bank Lowers Key Interest Rate to 47.5%

A girl sells plastic items to people in the Kadikoy district in Istanbul, Türkiye, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A girl sells plastic items to people in the Kadikoy district in Istanbul, Türkiye, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Türkiye’s central bank lowered its key interest rate by 2.5 percentage points to 47.5% on Thursday, carrying out its first rate cut in nearly two years as it tries to control soaring inflation.
Citing slowing inflation, the bank’s Monetary Policy Committee said it was reducing its one-week repo rate to 47.5% from the current 50%.
The committee said in a statement that the overall inflation trend was “flat” in November and that indicators suggest it is likely to decline in December, The Associated Press reported.

Demand within the country was slowing, helping to reduce inflation, it said.
Inflation in Türkiye surged in recent years due to declining foreign reserves and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s unconventional economic policy of lowering rates as a way to tame inflation — which he later abandoned.
Inflation stood at 47% in November, after having peaked at 85% in late 2022, although independent economists say the real rate is much higher than the official figures.

Most economists argue that higher interest rates help control inflation, but the Turkish leader had fired central bank governors for failing to fall in line with his previous rate-cutting policies.

Following a return to more conventional policies under a new economic team, the central bank raised interest rates from 8.5% to 50% between May 2023 and March 2024. The bank had kept rates steady at 50% until Thursday's rate cut.
The high inflation has left many households struggling to afford basic goods, such as food and housing.