Egypt and UAE drive record order backlog for Orascom despite revenue slide

Orascom is building the longest monorail system in the world. The first line runs 54km from East Cairo to the New Administrative Capital. The second line will be around 42km in length connecting the Giza Governorate to Sixth of October City. (Image: Orascom)

Egypt-based construction company Orascom has seen its order backlog rise to a record US$7 billion, despite a decline in revenue which it blamed on the devaluation of the Egyptian pound.

Orascom, which owns a 50% stake in Franco-Belgian contractor BESIX Group, saw its consolidated backlog excluding BESIX increase by 14.1% year on year and 26.3% quarter on quarter to $7 billion as of 30 September.

Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) accounted for 79% of new awards during the quarter to 30 September, which totaled US$2.3 billion.

Among the new awards was a large-scale water treatment and transportation project in Abu Dhabi as part of a consortium, worth up to $2.4 billion.

The balance of the new orders came in the USA for data centre projects.

BESIX’s standalone backlog stood at €5.4 billion as of 30 September 2023, reflecting a decrease of 1.7% year on year. New awards amounted to €667.5 million in Q3 of 2023.

Orascom’s revenue for the nine months to 30 September 2023 was $2.4 billion, down 22.5% on the same period the year before. In the Middle East and Africa, it was $1.3 billion which marked a 36.4% decline. In the USA, revenue was up 8.8% to $1 billion.

CEO Osama Bishai said, “We continue to take steps to implement our long-term strategy and navigate a challenging environment in Egypt impacted by inflation and currency devaluation.

“Reflecting our strategy, most of our projects signed in Egypt are funded by international institutions while the new large-scale water treatment and transportation project in Abu Dhabi, UAE marks the right steps towards geographic diversification. New awards in the U.S. accounted for the balance and maintained strong momentum, mainly led by large data centre projects.”