By Mohamed Ezz, Michael Hogan and Olga Popova
CAIRO (Reuters) -Egypt’s state grain buyer, Mostakbal Misr for Sustainable Development, has locked in enough wheat to meet the country’s needs through the end of June 2025, two sources with direct knowledge told Reuters.
But a lack of details about the timing, pricing, and whether the contracts represent entirely new deals left some traders questioning the size of the deals.
The sources, asking not to be named because they were not authorised to speak publicly, told Reuters Mostakbal Misr’s contracts totalled about 1.267 million metric tons, most of which was sourced from Russia.
Shipments of the contracted wheat have begun arriving at Egyptian ports, with further deliveries scheduled in the coming months, they added.
The selection of Mostakbal Misr in December as Egypt’s sole importer of strategic commodities marked a significant change.
Mostakbal Misr, established in 2022 by presidential decree, was previously the development arm of the Egyptian Air Force and the decades-old General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC) was the country’s strategic grains buyer.
The GASC typically imported 4-5 million tons per year.
Traders and observers cited inconsistencies between the figures on Mostakbal Misr’s contracted volumes, according to the sources, and evidence seen so far on the market, as well as a lack of clarity regarding terms of procurement.
“We cannot confirm the announced transaction. Accredited Russian exporters are not aware of its details as they did not participate in it,” Rusgrain head Eduard Zernin told Reuters
A European trader said some volumes were purchased, but “nowhere near” the figure mentioned by the sources.
Another trader said the amount was around 480,000 metric tons, primarily sourced from local port warehouses and paid for in Egyptian pounds.
Reuters could not independently verify the information.
Egypt depends on wheat imports for supplying subsidised bread to 70 million people, and has encountered challenges importing the grain in recent months while its strategic reserves have dwindled.
An Egyptian government official told Reuters the new agency has faced resistance from international organisations that offer hard currency to Egypt.
The said they would only deal with “civilian bodies”, as opposed to a government agency, the official said, adding the strategic reserves fell from a seven-month stock in July 2024 to only three months of reserve now, including previously contracted quantities.
In September, the GASC bought 430,000 tons of Russian wheat for October delivery. However, delays pushed shipments to November and December, with only two shipments totaling 120,000 tons delivered so far.
Egypt also bought 290,000 tons in November, taking total wheat shipments since September to 410,000 tons.
This figure represents a small fraction of Egypt’s broader wheat procurement plan, which aimed to secure 3.8 million tons by the end of 2024, an estimate previously announced by Supply Minister Sherif Farouk.
(Reporting by Mohamed Ezz, Michael Hogan and Olga Popova; editing by Jason Neely and Barbara Lewis)
