Uhde wins third contract for a fertiliser plant in Egypt

The Cairo-based Egyptian company Helwan Fertilizer Company (HFC) has awarded Uhde GmbH of Dortmund, Germany, a contract to construct a turnkey fertiliser complex. The contract was signed on March 9, 2004, in Cairo and enters into effect today. Work on the major contract will begin immediately. Uhde announced only this January the award of contracts for two almost identical fertiliser complexes in Egypt.

"The new contract is the successful continuation of a long partnership between Uhde and the Egyptian industrial sector and a sign of Uhde's leading world position in the design and construction of large-scale fertiliser complexes," said Dr. Wolfgang Essig, Chairman of Uhde's Executive Board.

As with the previous fertiliser plant contracts, this one is also for an ammonia/urea complex with a capacity of 1,200 tonnes per day of ammonia and 1,925 tonnes per day of urea. It includes all utilities and off-site units. The scope of supplies will include the entire engineering (basic and detail), supply of the equipment, construction and commissioning. The complex will be located in Helwan, some 30 km south of Cairo, and is due to start production in mid-2007.

The ammonia plant will be based on Uhde's proprietary ammonia process while the urea plant will be built according to Netherlands-based Stamicarbon's synthesis and granulation technologies. All selected processes are particularly environment-friendly and comply with the stringent Egyptian and European standards. The catalysts for the ammonia plants will be supplied by Uhde's renowned ammonia catalyst partner Johnson Matthey Catalysts of the UK.

With the urea fertiliser produced, HFC will serve both the domestic and export markets. To further strengthen the Egyptian economy, an increased amount of the supplies and engineering services will be rendered by local companies.