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Tensions are simmering again in Egypt following the acquittal of the “Camel Battle” defendants, but for self-confessed workaholic, Moataz Al Alfi, chairman and CEO of Egypt-Kuwait Holding Company (EKH), it is business as usual. In fact, with interests and indeed investments centered on the energy and fertilizer industries in Egypt, Kuwait, Sudan and Syria, Al Alfi’s holding company, established in 1997, has learned not only to survive the twists and turns of economic and political turmoil, but to thrive. For the chairman-CEO who was involved in relocating Americana Group’s operations from Kuwait to Saudi Arabia in the midst of the 1990 conflict with Iraq, the secret to success is quite simple: experience, and lots of it. “We have been living in a turbulent world, and we know how to handle it. Let’s put it that way,” he remarks. However, while consistently proving his ability to prevail against the odds—revolution in Egypt, secession of South Sudan, and devastation in Syria—EKH’s leading man is the first to admit that the past two years have been a challenge, not least on home soil. Weak infrastructure, red tape and poor access to energy supplies across Egypt have hindered growth and in some cases led to plant closures of companies that just three years back were booming.
Closure may never have been on the cards for this industrial powerhouse that boasts 15,000 employees and multiple companies across five groups, but even EKH failed to escape the financial blows dealt by the unrest of 2011. Despite an increase in revenues to $499.3 million last year compared to $458.7 million in 2010, EKH’s total assets dropped to $1.75 billion in 2011 compared to $1.86 billion the year before, while net profit fell to just over $182 million down from $185.1 million. Perhaps most shocking of all, the value of shares in Al Alfi’s company fell by 70% in 2011, indicative of plummeting confidence in Egypt’s economic strength. Nevertheless, almost a year on, the optimistic leader is confident that better times lay ahead, “in the future we will be much better. I think next year will be better, hopefully.”
Closure may never have been on the cards for this industrial powerhouse that boasts 15,000 employees and multiple companies across five groups, but even EKH failed to escape the financial blows dealt by the unrest of 2011. Despite an increase in revenues to $499.3 million last year compared to $458.7 million in 2010, EKH’s total assets dropped to $1.75 billion in 2011 compared to $1.86 billion the year before, while net profit fell to just over $182 million down from $185.1 million. Perhaps most shocking of all, the value of shares in Al Alfi’s company fell by 70% in 2011, indicative of plummeting confidence in Egypt’s economic strength. Nevertheless, almost a year on, the optimistic leader is confident that better times lay ahead, “in the future we will be much better. I think next year will be better, hopefully.”
