São Paulo – Yesterday (10th), the Egyptian Trade Representative to the city of São Paulo, Mahmoud Mazhar, and the secretary general of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, Michel Alaby, visited the premises of Electrometer, a power metre factory that should start operating by early next year in the municipality of Sabará, in the interior of the state of Minas Gerais. The company has Egyptian and Brazilian capital. The Egyptian investor is the Zaki El Sewedy Group, with a 60% share, and the Brazilian partner is company Damp Electric, with 40%.
Mazhar offered the support of the Egyptian government to the company’s operations in Brazil. So did Alaby, who placed the Arab Brazilian Chamber at disposal to help. “The Egyptian government provides full support to Egyptian companies abroad,” said the representative. The two met with the managing director of Electrometer, Assem El Shafei. According to Alaby, the businessmen are pleased and have good business prospects once the operations begin. The premises have already been built and the equipment is already in place.
At first, the company is going to cater to the power measurement market in Brazil, and further on it intends to export to Latin America as well. The company should manufacture 700,000 power metres per year. Upon announcing the joint venture, the company informed that it is going to make five different types of metres, but that the Egyptian company, which already operates in the segment, has the technology to make more than 10 different types.
The Zaki El Sewedy Group comprises 15 companies in different sectors. Revenues exceed US$ 100 million a year. The company was founded in 1938 and this is its first branch in South America. It already operates outside Egypt, however, in countries such as Ghana, Zambia, Ethiopia and Mexico. There already are Egyptians working at the factory in Brazil. Such is the case with Omar M. Akel, an Egyptian who has been living in Brazil for five years and was hired to work at the Marketing Department of Electrometer.
The visit to the factory was part of the schedule for the trip of the Egyptian Representative and Alaby to the state of Minas Gerais. On Wednesday (9th) they participated in seminar “How to negotiate with Egypt,” held in state capital Belo Horizonte, and organized by the Federation of Industries of the State of Minas Gerais (Fiemg), with support from the consulate and the Arab Brazilian Chamber. After the seminar, which brought together approximately 20 businessmen, Mazhar met with representatives of companies interested in entering the Egyptian market.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
