Egypt signed a $29.7 billion real estate agreement on Thursday with Qatari Diar to develop a project in Samla and Alam Al-Roum on the North Coast, with the state receiving both cash and in-kind returns.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said in a statement today that the New Urban Communities Authority will receive $3.5 billion in cash before year-end in exchange for the project land, using the same revenue-sharing framework applied with private developers. The government will also take built residential space valued at about $1.8 billion and 15% of net overall profits after full cost recovery, he said.
Madbouly said residential buildings will account for 60% of the total area, service zones no more than 15%, and roads, squares, and green and open spaces about 25%. The government will prepare and hand over the land free of encumbrances to the Qatari company.
A cabinet source told Al Manassa on Tuesday that late-stage talks shifted the land tenure from usufruct to outright sale. On Oct. 23, the same source said officials aimed to announce the scheme in November.
According to the cabinet, the plan includes residential districts and compounds; tourism and entertainment projects; open artificial lagoons; golf courses; an international marina and two local marinas; and core infrastructure such as power distribution stations and water desalination and treatment plants, as well as hospitals, schools, universities, and government facilities.
Qatar’s minister of municipality and Qatari Diar chair, Abdullah bin Hamad, called the project one of the region’s landmark investments and estimated it would generate 250,000 jobs.
Qatari Diar CEO Ali Mohamed Al-Ali said the North Coast project—covering more than 20 million square meters with over 4,500 hotel rooms—aims to be a global Mediterranean destination, developed with the New Urban Communities Authority to align design with international best standards.
The signing follows a joint Egypt–Qatar statement in April during President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s visit to Doha that referenced up to $7.5 billion in direct Qatari investments to be made in the coming phase, a figure that officials said increased in recent talks.
This is Egypt’s second-largest foreign deal after the $35 billion Ras El-Hekma project by UAE-based Modon. Other recent investment deals include Emaar Misr and City Stars’ Marassi Red Sea venture at 900 billion Egyptian pounds (about $18 billion).
