Cairo has given the light to start a special free zone in New Alamein. This new free zone will focus on storing and moving oil and petroleum products. This move is a step forward for energy cooperation between Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.
The Cabinet has approved this plan so the new Fujairah Alamein Oil and Gas Company can start working. This company will run an economic zone that covers about 738,000 square metres on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt according to the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade on Friday as it makes sense that officials picked the Matrouh Governorate site. They want to use the sea access in New Alamein and the logistics infrastructure that is already there.
The move builds on a partnership Cairo struck with the Emirate of Fujairah last October, when the two sides signed three separate agreements covering crude storage, trade logistics along the coast, and upgrades to the El-Hamra Petroleum Port.
Egypt’s petroleum ministry has framed that cooperation as part of a broader push to leverage the country’s geographic position and energy assets to strengthen its footing in regional oil trade.
Investment Minister Mohamed Farid said the free-zone model reflects the government’s wider strategy of using flexible investment tools to speed up project rollouts, particularly within the energy sector.
He noted his ministry is now working alongside the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources to finalize the remaining regulatory steps needed before operations can start.
No timeline has yet been set for when the facility will become operational, though officials say further coordination between the two ministries is underway.
The project adds to a expanding list of investment and infrastructure ventures reshaping New Alamein, a city Egypt has been actively marketing as a hub for tourism, industry and foreign capital alongside its Mediterranean resort appeal.
Authorities say the venture is expected to strengthen Egypt’s role as a regional player in crude storage and trade, building on the country’s Suez Canal-adjacent position and its existing petroleum infrastructure network.
