Orascom Construction Industries announces 3rd Quarter Results


Cairo -- (MARKET WIRE) -- November 14, 2006 --

                                                             NEWS RELEASE
OCI Reports Record Revenue, EBITDA & Earnings

OCI posts 84% growth in consolidated EBITDA and 66% rise in net income during the third quarter 2006

Cairo, Egypt - 13 November 2006: Orascom Construction Industries announced consolidated revenue of EGP 11,942.1 million (US$ 2,076.0 million) with earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of EGP 3,374.5 million (US$ 586.6 million) and net income of EGP 2,015.3 million (US$ 350.3 million) for the nine months ended 30 September 2006.

During the same period last year, OCI reported consolidated revenue of EGP 8,270.3 million (US$ 1,416.1 million) with EBITDA of EGP 2,027.8 million (US$ 347.2 million) and net income of EGP 1,274.5 million (US$ 218.2 million).

OCI also reported record consolidated revenue of EGP 4,952.6 million (US$ 860.9 million) with EBITDA of EGP 1,331.5 million (US$ 231.5 million) and net income of EGP 806.7 million (US$ 140.2 million) for the third quarter ended 30 September 2006.

During the same quarter last year, OCI reported consolidated revenue of EGP 2,905.3 million (US$ 497.5 million) with EBITDA of EGP 722.3 million (US$ 123.7 million) and net income of EGP 484.9 million (US$ 83.0 million).

In the quarterly message to shareholders, OCI Chief Executive Officer Nassef Sawiris commented:

"This third quarter reflects the impact of OCI's enlarged portfolio of cement capacity. During the quarter, consolidated revenue grew 71%, EBITDA also rose an impressive 84% and net income increased 66%. For the nine months ended September 06, OCI showed revenue growth of 44%, EBITDA growth of 66% and a rise in net income of 58%.

The OCI Cement Group reported 59% growth in EBITDA on the back of volume increases and positive market conditions. Following the successful start- up of our new cement capacity in Egypt, Northern Iraq and Pakistan during July, the Cement Group management focused its attention on stabilizing the new production equipment to reach optimal operational levels. The third quarter did not reflect the full impact of these new capacities. Our Cement Group capacity has grown 40% this year to reach 21 million tons. During the next 10 months we expect to add 10 million tons of new cement capacity to reach 31 million tons. We have continued to pursue a strategy of vertical integration into markets which suffer from structural supply deficits in cement. Our strategy has begun to materialize with our announcement of the acquisition of a 50% stake in Group GLA, the largest independent aggregates and ready-mix concrete producer in Spain. Group GLA comes with a strong management team that has a proven track record in addition to annual operational capacities in aggregates of 5 million tons along with 240 million tons of reserves, ready-mix concrete capacity of 3.5 million cubic meters and cement milling capacity 0.6 million tons. Jointly with the Cementos La Parilla clinker grinding plant north of Madrid, our previous Spanish acquisition, the combined annual cement milling capacity reaches 1.8 million tons in Spain. We will continue to investigate attractive greenfield opportunities in emerging markets, potential expansions in core subsidiaries and value-creating distribution investments in developed markets.

The Construction Group added approximately a billion dollars of new work during the quarter. The Group reported 37% growth in revenue with a robust EBITDA margin of 14% which is consistent with previous quarters. The strong growth continues to reflect a good regional construction market with opportunities for performing contractors. We will continue to maintain a policy of managed growth and focus on profitability.

Our ability to capitalize on new investment opportunities in both emerging and key developed markets for our core businesses will be bolstered by our attentiveness to a healthy balance which is achieved by a focus on free cash flow and active debt management. Based on an annualized EBITDA, net debt stands at 1.2x EBITDA."

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Orascom Construction Industries

Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) is a leading cement producer and construction contractor active in emerging markets. As a cement producer, we own and operate cement plants in Egypt, Algeria, Turkey, northern Iraq, Pakistan and Spain which have a combined annual production capacity of 21 million tons. Our new investments in Northern Iraq, Turkey, Nigeria, Algeria, and the United Arab Emirates will increase our annual production capacity to 34 million tons. As a contractor, we provide engineering procurement and construction services on industrial, commercial and infrastructure projects for private and public customers principally in the Middle East, Africa and Central Asia. OCI also invests in natural gas-based industries and infrastructure concessions.

For additional information on OCI: www.orascomci.com

Orascom Construction Industries (OCI)
Nile City Towers - South Tower
2005A Corniche El Nil, Cairo, Egypt
Tel: +202 461 1111, Fax: +202 461 9400,
OCI stock symbols: OCIC.CA / ORCI EY / OCICqL / ORSD LI


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