The MENA region's leading automotive company has been tapped to offer affordable, high-quality vehicles to the country's taxi operators

CAIRO -- On Tuesday April 07, 2008, GB Auto S.A.E. (Auto.CA), the leading automotive assembler and distributor in the Middle East and North Africa, delivered its first three vehicles to a government initiative to modernize the nation's taxi fleet by compelling the replacement of vehicles 28 years old and above.

The program, created in the wake of new traffic regulations passed in the summer of 2008, will open a market opportunity in excess of 34,000 units over the coming 12 months alone.

Implemented under the auspices of the Egyptian Ministry of Finance, the program is a national collaboration between Egypt's banking sector and vehicle distributors to finance and supply a fleet of modern, locally produced taxis.

"GB Auto is pleased to work with the Ministry of Finance to supply citizens with safe, reliable and clean cars," said GB Auto Chief Executive Officer Dr. Raouf Ghabbour. "For more than 50 years, GB Auto has built its market leadership with a dedication to value, unparalleled service and best-in-class products. We look forward to leveraging this experience to support the government's goals and provide Egypt's taxi operators with some of the most reliable vehicles on the road with the lowest cost of ownership and highest resale value of any passenger car in Egypt."

The Ministry of Finance will subsidize the taxi replacement initiative in a four-stage program that exempts qualified taxi drivers from sales taxes and customs. Three Egyptian banks will finance the vehicles with low-interest loans.

GB Auto is supplying Hyundai Verna models to the program at a per-unit cost of EGP 53,900. Taxi license holders who qualify for the program first obtain bank financing from a participating bank before choosing their vehicle and receiving an EGP 5,000 trade-in credit for their old passenger car. Taxi drivers opting for a GB Auto vehicle will benefit from the nation's largest after-sales service network and the wide availability of high-quality, affordable spare parts and accessories.

Drivers choosing Vernas will be responsible for gross monthly installments of EGP 665. A monthly advertising allowance of EGP 100 per vehicle from advertising agencies who are placing adverts on the car bodies will reduce the net monthly payment per vehicle to EGP 565.

GB Auto, the largest Egyptian automotive supplier by sales revenue, market share, and production capacity, expects its local manufacturing division to be a significant supplier for the government's new taxi initiative. When it is approved by authorities, a second phase of the taxi-replacement program under discussion could reduce the age limit to 20 years, expanding the pool of vehicles needing replacement to as many as 70,000.

News of the program comes as GB Auto enters some of the final stages in its year-long expansion of its production capacity through the building of a new paint shop. Once the new shop is complete later this year, GB Auto's annual passenger car production capacity should more than double, reaching up to 100,000 units.

GB Auto assembles passenger cars in Egypt from imported kits using a legally mandated percentage of local content and also imports already-assembled vehicles.

The deal continues GB Auto's longstanding collaboration with government transportation initiatives, which has seen the company provide the state with durable, well-priced buses, motorcycles, construction equipment and other vehicles. Haram Transport Company, a fully owned subsidiary, operates four inter-urban transportation lines on a government contract.

GB Auto's exceptionally robust balance sheet further positions the company to ramp up production and service to meet demand requirements as Egypt looks to improve its public transportation infrastructure under a recently announced stimulus package.

"With the largest production capacity on the market, GB Auto operates with no long-term debt and has ample flexibility to quickly meet new demand," says Ghabbour.

-Ends-

About GB Auto S.A.E.
GB Auto S.A.E. (Stock Symbol: AUTO.CA) is the leading automotive producer and distributor in the Egyptian market. The company assembles, imports and distributes passenger cars under the Hyundai brand as well as commercial vehicles (buses, trucks and trailers) under the Volvo, Mitsubishi, Hyundai and Ghabbour brands. In addition, it distributes motorcycles and scooters under the Bajaj brand, tires under the Lassa brand and construction equipment under the Volvo, Linde and Ingersol Rand brands. The company also operates Egypt's largest network of service centers and automotive accessories sales points as well as passenger and cargo transportation services. GB Auto is headquartered in Giza, Greater Cairo Area, Egypt. (www.ghabbourauto.com) 

Investor Relations Contact Information:
Mr. Bassem El-Shawy,
Investor Relations Director and Corporate Secretary
Email: ir@ghabbour.com
Tel: +2 (0) 2 3910 0485
Fax: +2 (0) 2 3539 0139
Address: Cairo-Alexandria Desert Road, Km. 28, Industrial Zone,
Abou Rawash
P.O. Box 120,
Giza,
Egypt

Forward-Looking Statements

This document may contain certain "forward-looking statements" relating to the Company's business. These may be identified in part through the use of forward-looking terminology such as "will," "planned," "expectations" and "forecast" as well as similar explanations or qualifiers and by discussions of strategy, plans or intentions. These statements may include descriptions of investments planned or currently under consideration or development by the Company and the anticipated impact of these investments. Any such statements reflect the current views of the Company with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could cause the actual results, performance, decisions or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

© Press Release 2009