The Tikur Abay Shoe S.C that had been vainly put up for auction by the Privatization and Public Enterprises Supervising Agency (PPESA) numerous times, has finally been sold for 30.4 million Br to Kebire Enterprise, one of the companies owned by Sheikh Mohammed Al-Amoudi.
 

PPESA had put the Shoe Factory on auction more than four times and had failed to make a sale on each occasion.
 

In July 2006, the Agency put Anbessa Shoe Factory, Addis Abeba Tannery, Kombolcha Textile Factory, Edget Yarn and Sewing Thread Factory, Ethiopian Fiber Products Factory, DebreBirhan Blanket Factory and Tikur Abay up for auction.
 

As a result, Geo Traco PLC bought Addis Abeba Tannery for 22.1 million Br, and a 47.7 million Br offer made by Crown Textiles Plc to buy Edget Yarn and Sewing Thread Factory was also accepted by the Agency.
 

Three of the companies, Anbessa Shoe Factory, Debre Birhan Blanket Factory and Ethiopian Fiber Products, did not find buyers. In addition, the 43.5 million Br presented by Kebire Enterprise for the purchase of Kombolcha Textile Factory was rejected by the Agency's Board as the offer was lower than the price set by PPESA.
 

Sources told Fortune that the PPESA Board, led by Makonnen Manyazewal, state minister of Finance and Economic Development, accepted the offers made on the three companies during a meeting on October 6, 2006.
 

Kebire Enterprise, the garment company that bought Tikur Abay Shoe S.C, was established in Mekelle, in April 2001, by Al-Amoudi and his wife Sofia Saleh Al-Amoudi with a capital of one million Birr. Kebire previously launched MAA Garment in Mekelle, in the Tigray Region, located 790Km from Addis Abeba on June 5, 2004, with a capital of 57 million Br.
 

Tikur Abay, which was formerly known as ASCO, was established in 1948 and is located in the Gulele District of Addis Abeba. This factory was known for the manufacturing of army boots with a capacity of over 600,000 shoes per year. It exported to Yemen and Uganda in the 1980s, making it one of the first exporter companies in the country.
 

Tikur Abay lies on 30,000sqm of land, with an additional 8,000sqm of land where it manufacturing plant rests.
 

Addis Abeba Tannery, which is located in the same area as Tikur Abay, was established in 1925, with the goal of processing leather that can be used for making shoes, especially supplying its neighbour company.
 

The Tannery, which employs 320 workers, has the capacity of processing more than 2.3 million hides, and has so far been selling 95pc of its goods to the local shoe manufacturing companies.

The buyer of this Tannery, Geo Traco, was established by Haji Ibrahim Asfaw, a leather supplier, more than 10 years ago. The Company is also building another tannery in Modjo, 78Km from Addis Abeba.
 

The Edget Yarn and Sewing Thread Factory, which was formerly known as Diabaco Cotton Company was established in 1953 with a capital of one million Birr; the Factory is located on Roosevelt Street around Sar Bet on 68,307sqm of land.
 

As opposed to the other companies being auctioned, Edget had three companies interested in purchasing it. One was a Turkish company named Narin Ormay (a company that leased the Awassa and Arba Minch Textile Factories) offering 11.7 million Br; another contender was Tian Jin, a Chinese company who offered 45.2 million Br.

The third and winning company, Crown Textile Plc, is in the process of building a weaving factory and is also involved in the transport sector; the owner is an Ethiopian lady investor that has relocated from the UK.