Cairo – Mubasher: The Egyptian Iron and Steel (Hadisolb) said that its parent company, Metallurgical Industries Holding Co, signed a partnership agreement with a Ukrainian company for raising iron concentration at Hadisolb’s iron ore mine in Bahariya Oasis through dry magnetic separation.  

Hadisolb targets higher-value exports by manufacturing iron ore used in electric arc furnaces and blast furnaces, the company said in a statement to the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) on Thursday.

The first phase of the project includes building a semi-industrial unit in Bahariya Oasis and conducting geological studies at a cost of $675,000, while the second phase comprises the establishment of an ore concentration plant at a cost of $35 million and with an output capacity of 1.3 million tonnes annually.

The Ukrainian firm will participate in the first two phases by contributing 30% to the capital of a new joint venture.

Lastly, the third phase includes establishing an iron ore plant in partnership with the private sector at a cost of $65 million to produce about 1 million tonnes of iron ore per year.

It is worth mentioning that during the first nine months of fiscal year 2019/2020, Hadisolb incurred net losses of EGP 783.847 million, compared to EGP 531.28 million in the year-ago period.