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Egypt's Think Big Shipping and Logistics, which will provide port-based import and export services as well as logistics services through its own fleets of seagoing cargo ships and land transport trucks, will commence operations in the first quarter of 2023.
"We have established the company initial capital of 20 million Egyptian pounds ($823,641), in cooperation with the accountant office of Emil Fawzy Masoud. We aim to start operations in the Egyptian market in the first quarter of 2023," the company’s founder Mahmoud Kamal said in an interview with Zawya Projects.
He said Think Big is targeting revenues worth 50 million pounds ($2 million) in the first year of operations focussing on the ports of Alexandria, Damietta, East Tafria and Port Said.
Kamal said the company has invested in its own fleet of German-made heavy transport vehicles to provide integrated logistics services and enhance its competitive edge in the market.
The Thing Big CEO, who owns a company specialised in unloading and shipping operations in the USA, said he decided to enter the Egyptian market after conducting a feasibility study.
"The best time to start a new investment is in a period of crises and challenges, with expectations of restoring the movement of economic activity, which prompted us to establish Think Big and prepare to seize the largest share of truck traffic coming to Egypt,” said Kamal.
Think Big will also partner with American company HAUL to launch an app that will provide heavy transport vehicles to importers and exporters in Egypt.
"Through the application, an importer or exporter can contract heavy transport vehicles at appropriate prices for any part of the country."
He added that the application is slated for launch by the end of 2022 and will target at least 1,000 trips during the first year of operation.
Floating shares
Kamal said the company hopes to float 30 percent of its shares on the Egyptian Stock Exchange in 2024 to raise capital to increase the number of ships and heavy transport vehicles.
He pointed out that the Ministry of Transport’s comprehensive plan transform Egypt into a global trade and logistics hub has seen number of global port operators and shipping companies coming into Ehypt, like the Hong Kong-based Hutchison in Sokhna, France’s CMA CGM in Alexandria, Germany’s Eurogate in Damietta) and the UAE’s Abu Dhabi Ports in Safaga and Ain Sokhna).
However, he noted that Egypt also needs to invest in its own container fleet so that “we can be influential in the maritime market” and be less impacted by fluctuations in freight rates.
“Freight prices witnessed many increases in the recent period due to the pandemic. Whoever owned fleet of trucks and containers were least impacted by these increases,” he said.
(Reporting by Marwa Abo Almajd; Editing by Anoop Menon)
