Photo credit: Al-Ahram
Starting in July, commercial shops in Egypt will close by 10 PM to conserve electricity, announced Prime Minister, Mostafa Madbouly, on Tuesday. Pharmacies, supermarkets, and restaurants will close by 1 AM.
During a press conference at the Council of Ministers headquarters in the New Administrative Capital, Madbouly urged citizens to support the government’s energy-saving initiatives. He assured the public that daily power cuts, currently lasting up to three hours, will be reduced to two hours next week and completely stopped by the third week of July.
The Prime Minister revealed plans to import 300,000 tons of mazut and additional quantities of natural gas to fuel power plants, at a cost of USD 1.18 billion, to end the power outages.
“The issue we are dealing with is securing the necessary financial resources to provide the products required to operate the electrical stations at full capacity,” the Prime Minister stressed.
Since 2022, Egypt has pursued a national energy strategy aimed at reducing consumption and preserving natural gas resources while boosting exports. However, increased energy demands have strained supplies of mazut and natural gas crucial for electricity generation.
Last summer, Egypt implemented scheduled power cuts lasting up to three hours due to heightened demand during a heatwave. This year, these measures have been extended to maintain the efficiency of the national electricity grid and natural gas networks.
President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi has emphasized that these efforts aim to manage consumption effectively and shield citizens from the higher actual cost of electricity.
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