The Siwa Oases is a depression in Egypt’s Western desert with a huge underground water reservoir. The oasis is the home of Hayat water company that bottles high quality natural water from a depth of over 1000 meters. Siwa has a rich history of agriculture since the days of Alexander the Great. The oasis is among the world’s largest producers of olives and dates but an Italian research shows many more possibilities that have remained largely unexplored. A Chinese study shows the opportunities to change Egyptian deserts into oasis.

We were involved in the research of Prof. Dr. Ralph Berenger in 2006-2007 that shows the conditions in the oasis are perfect to grow kenaf, a highly productive and multifunctional fibre plant that could be of great economic benefit to Egypt. The prospectus Berenger wrote is focused on the use of kenaf for paper production. Egypt has been importing paper pulp from other countries for years with substantial costs. Kenaf pulp could replace paper pulp and greatly reduce costs of paper production in Egypt.  Berenger calculated that growing kenaf may result in a production of around 8000 US$ per year per feddan. But using kenaf for the production of paper is not the only opportunity. Prof. Berenger has outlined many other industrial uses of kenaf. International interest in kenaf is growing and thus also offers opportunities for export.

In 2007 we bought 220 feddan of desert land in Siwa. Since we lacked the needed investments for kenaf we started growing olives on twenty feddans (1 feddan is 4200m2). Our land is not far from the Hayat water company. We have plenty good quality underground water. Our land is strategically bordering the old Siwa-Bahariya oasis road (now unpaved) that continues to Cairo, is being paved and once opened will tremendously reduce the travel time between Siwa and Cairo and will increase the value of the land. Desert land close by has already been developed into agricultural land. Most production in the neighborhood is traditional; olives and dates but other products can be grown he as well. We remain open to any business cooperation. For the history of developments on our land please click here.  For photos showing the development of our land click here.

Egypt is going through great changes following the revolution. Siwa remains a great location to grow this plant and opportunities remain unchanged.

Please see the various documents on our website and if you are interested contact us through:

Cornelis Hulsman
kshulsman@yahoo.com
Cairo, May 29, 2015

Eng. Sawsan Gabra Ayoub Khalil

Dr. Raga’I Gabra Ayoub Khalil
owners