The Egyptian kaolin: an outlook in the view of the new climate of investment

Egypt has large reserves of kaolin in many localities in Sinai, Red Sea coast and Kalabsha near Aswan. These kaolins can satisfy the local demand for filler, paper and ceramic industries 10 times for at least 50 years, in comparison to the current demand. However, the Egyptian kaolin is hard and massive. It is also low grade so that it needs beneficiation to be suitable for paper and ceramic industries, which import their needs at the present time. Beneficiation of the Egyptian kaolin from different localities indicated their technical viability for ceramic production and as paper filler. In the meantime, the Egyptian government has created a new healthy climate to encourage investment in Egypt. For example, the government provided many facilities to investors in the new cities, increased the period of free taxes to 10–20 years (depending on the project site) and reduced the interest of borrowing money from banks. All these facilities, among others, will have a positive impact on the economic viability of projects. This paper evaluates the situation of Egyptian kaolins, their methods of beneficiation and the domestic market. A summary for the economic pre-feasibility study was presented. The new laws of investment make such economic pre-feasibility more profitable in terms of return on investment (ROI) and pay back period (PBP).