Ras El Hekma is in earthworks and infrastructure phase in 2026; lifting demand follows when vertical packages are awarded. Before quoting landed cost, get a binding HS classification: PwC puts industrial machinery generally at 0-5% duty and trucks and heavy equipment generally at 10-20%, and 14% VAT is generally calculated on CIF plus duty and other applicable taxes, so the band you land in moves duty and VAT together.
*By Telescro Editorial Team*
Egypt’s Ras El Hekma megacity on the North Coast has moved from signing ceremony to earthworks. On 23 February 2026, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly chaired a progress review with the project’s Abu Dhabi and Egyptian principals, with thousands of workers reported on site. For equipment suppliers, the question is not whether this project is real, but when its demand shifts from earthmoving to lifting.
## What Changed
The investment agreement behind Ras El Hekma was signed in February 2024 with an initial commitment reported at $35bn, according to The Middle East Insider’s April 2026 status review. Two years in, the February 2026 government review reported active work across the industrial zone, hospitality developments, and service facilities, per Daily News Egypt’s coverage of the meeting. Egypt’s State Information Service published its own briefing on the same review.
The corporate structure matters for anyone selling into the project. Daily News Egypt reported the review was attended by Jassem Al Zaabi, Managing Director and CEO of L’IMAD Holding, the Abu Dhabi-Egypt development vehicle, and Abdulla Al Sahi, Managing Director of Modon Holding, the developer. Contractors and rental companies working the site will sit under these entities’ procurement chains, not under a single state buyer.
## Key Numbers
Initial commitment: $35bn, with developers projecting cumulative investment that could exceed $110bn by 2045, according to Property News Africa’s second-year review. The same review reports the first residential phase targeted around 2028 and a new international airport opening in stages.
On the import side, PwC’s Egypt tax summary sets out three points that matter before anyone quotes a landed cost. Industrial machinery generally falls in a 0 to 5% customs duty band. Trucks and heavy equipment generally fall in a 10 to 20% band. The rate that actually applies depends on the binding HS classification assigned to the specific machine. PwC also states that the 14% VAT is generally calculated on the CIF value plus customs duty and other applicable taxes, so duty and VAT compound rather than sit side by side.
## What It Means for Equipment Buyers
Where a telescopic handler lands between those two bands is not something you should assume. A telehandler carries a load-handling function that can be read against either category, and Egyptian customs assigns the binding classification, so treat the following only as an illustrative scenario: on a $60,000 CIF machine, the low band works out to $0 to $3,000 duty plus $8,400 to $8,820 VAT, a combined $8,400 to $11,820. The high band works out to $6,000 to $12,000 duty plus $9,240 to $10,080 VAT, a combined $15,240 to $22,080. Depending on where your machine lands, that is $3,400 to $13,700 per unit in duty and VAT on identical goods. Get a written classification ruling or a customs broker’s confirmation for your exact HS line before you price a fleet.
The 2026 site profile is earthworks, spine roads, and utilities, which is excavator and grader territory. Telehandler demand concentrates when vertical construction starts: hotel shells, residential blocks, cladding, and fit-out, work that sits in the 7 m to 18 m lift band. Contractors may begin specifying lifting fleets during 2026 and 2027 if the reported phasing holds, and hospitality packages tend to move first.
## Telescro Analysis
This suggests a two-stage demand window: earthmoving fleets are being bought now, and lifting equipment orders are likely to follow as vertical packages are awarded. For buyers and dealers, the practical implication is that relationships with contractors entering the L’IMAD and Modon tender chains are worth building before the lifting phase, when lead times typically compress. The presence of an industrial zone in the master plan also suggests material handling demand beyond the construction phase itself.
## Risks or Limitations
Progress claims come from government and developer briefings and have not been independently verified on site. Phase timing is indicative; coastal megaprojects have historically re-sequenced phases, and the 2028 target could move. The $110bn cumulative figure is a developer projection, not committed capital. The duty bands cited are general categories from PwC’s summary and are not a classification ruling for telehandlers; the scenario above is arithmetic on those bands, not a quote. Egyptian pound volatility has affected equipment import financing in recent years, and any multi-year fleet plan should be priced against a current rate from the Central Bank of Egypt rather than a historical band.
## Sources
– [Daily News Egypt, PM Madbouly Reviews Progress on Ras El Hekma](https://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2026/02/23/pm-madbouly-reviews-progress-on-ras-el-hekma-development-project/)
– [Egypt State Information Service, PM Follows Up Progress on Ras El Hekma and Shams El Hekma Projects](https://sis.gov.eg/en/media-center/news/pm-follows-up-progress-on-ras-el-hekma-shams-el-hekma-projects/)
– [The Middle East Insider, Ras Al Hekma 2026 Status](https://themiddleeastinsider.com/2026/04/25/ras-al-hekma-uae-egypt-2026-status/)
– [Property News Africa, Ras El Hekma at Two Years](https://propertynews.africa/ras-el-hekma-35-billion-uae-egypt-megacity-2026-update/)
– [PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries, Egypt Other Taxes](https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/egypt/corporate/other-taxes)