Egypt’s General Authority for Roads, Bridges and Land Transport (GARBLT) and Russia’s Armastek have joined hands to set up the country’s first Glass Fibre Reinforced Concrete (GFRC) factory in Badr City, East Cairo at investment of 300 million Egyptian pounds ($19 million). 

GFRC is used in commercial, residential, civil and infrastructure construction due to benefits like moisture absorption, fire resistance, weather resistance, crack-resistance, and durability, according to US-based research firm VMR. 

Ramy El Zaien, chief commercial officer of Armastek said the factory, currently under construction, will have a production capacity of 2,200 tonnes per month in the first phase. 

He said locally manufactured GFRC will cost 40 percent less compared to imports since Egypt is a major producer of glass fibre, a key raw material. 

In January 2018, China’s Xinhua had reported that Egypt has become the world's third largest producer of fibre-glass next to the United States and China. 

El Zaien said the company will not only cater to the domestic market but also to reconstruction projects in Syria and Libya, and also export to Oman, South Sudan, Sudan and Saudi Arabia. 

Mayer Gerges, CEO of GM Consulting Engineering Office told Zawya Projects that production at the new factory is scheduled to start by the third quarter. 

He said the factory features 10 lines for production of reinforced fibre with different diameters, 5 lines for mesh production and 2 lines for polypropylene fibre production. 

Gerges said the products would be used for buildings and roads that are directly exposed to water and air, such as airports, factory floors, roofs, canals lining and seaports. 

He noted that reinforced fiberglass has already been used in various projects in Egypt in areas such as fish farms, roofing for residential buildings and for projects in coastal areas.  

(Reporting by Marwa Abo Almajd; Editing by Anoop Menon) 

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