Top contracting company in Egypt for international projects: Global Consolidated Contractors

Interview with Mostafa Al Hassan, Chairman of Global Consolidated Contractors (GCC)

Can you describe us the general economic environment and business atmosphere here in Egypt at the moment? What role does the private sector play?

Since the election of president El-Sisi, Egypt is experiencing a more stable political situation, and this will be reflected in the economic revamp of Egypt. The good will of the people and the will of the government are supporting president El-Sisi for this economic revamp. We are currently looking at a number of strategic projects in Egypt; we are talking about the Suez Canal development, nuclear energy station development and the mining sector development. Therefore, a number of strategic projects are going to be implemented soon and will affect the economy positively.

What are the challenges when it comes to doing business in Egypt?

Apart from security, which is going to improve as we gain stability, protecting the international investments from the continuous changes in investment laws is very important. This is now a government’s target; the government is currently establishing new laws to encourage foreign direct investment flows into Egypt. The government is also planning to lift subsidisation from a number of principal services such as the gas and energy sector, which will make a lot of room for investments in the energy sector, especially in solar energy and consequently encourage international investors to come here.

Regarding security, what are the current market trends in private security?

In 2011, our group created its security company. This reflected the needs of the market at the time. Most of our clients in the oil and gas sector and in the private sector asked us to provide security services. I think that most businesses in the market now see security services as a necessary tool to protect their assets. I believe that the security sector will flourish further and will expand in the future.

Can you tell us a bit about Global Consolidated Contractors (GCC)?

Global Consolidated Contractors was established in 2005. The idea behind the company and even its name was to create a merger between the consortium from international companies in the construction sector and local companies. We work in construction management and we bring together international expertise and local labour to bid for international projects.

Our biggest success was in Libya from 2007 to 2010, where GCC participated in infrastructure projects throughout the country. With almost 16 international consortiums formed by GCC, we participated in major projects in Libya. We are currently doing similar projects in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Egypt.
Our main focus in Egypt is the Suez Canal project. GCC is currently in negotiations and has entered a number of agreements with international contractors and concessionaires to invest in the Suez Canal project, and to invest in projects regarding energy, infrastructure and ports. GCC has around 200 professional engineers including construction managers, contract managers and project managers. We provide these services for our country and for other countries in the Middle East.

What are GCC´s major strengths? What sets you apart from your competition?

We can only compete on internationally focused projects; we cannot compete in the local market. When it comes to international projects, where you need to have international experience, we are considered one of the only companies in Egypt who manages certain types of consortiums. Through our experience working with international and local contractors, we can create the right mechanism to fit the project. Currently we have formed a new consortium for the master plan of the Suez Canal, which includes about eight international companies. We are taking care of the master plan, marketing, media, economics, and discipline for this project. We are one of the few companies who can do this in Egypt right now.

What would be your personal vision for the company in the next 5 years?

We want GCC to increase its participation in African and other developing countries. We are currently expanding into South Sudan, Western Africa, Congo and Guinea. Our allies and joint venture partners are also looking for us to expand into Africa. GCC is providing labour and materials procurement in partnership with a number of international contractors as part of our Africa development strategy. This is our new focus.

What would be your personal vision for the country?

We are entering a number of affiliations with international investors. GCC is now working under the military program for revamping the economy, which includes a number of projects one of which is a housing scheme. GCC is also involved in recycling and new energy projects.

Egypt has many challenges. We had two revolutions over three and half years and we had six governments. Now, this is a time to regain stability and to rebuild Egypt. Unfortunately, the perception of the revolution and of Egypt in the west does not reflect what we see on the ground. It is very important that companies and international investors come to Egypt and investigate for themselves. Egypt is a land of opportunities due to its location and its people. There is no way that Egypt will regress; there is only one way forward and we are going to succeed. We are looking for partners for success. I would like to make a formal invitation to investors to come, investigate, and get to know the situation in Egypt properly so that they may participate with us in our projects.

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