Egypt Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly has announced that there will be no more power cuts or load shedding.
This announcement comes in response to recent concerns about potential power cuts, reaffirming the government’s dedication to maintaining a steady energy supply.
“We have secured more than $2.5 billion to guarantee sufficient fuel supply for the summer,” he said.
PM Mostafa Madbouly explained that the government had initially allocated $1.18 billion for this purpose but needed to increase the amount to ensure uninterrupted power.
The Egyptian government is working to ensure a steady fuel supply throughout the year, aiming to prevent the need for significant summer spending on fuel imports. Madbouly also mentioned the planned addition of 4 gigawatts of renewable energy (solar and wind) next year, along with allocating EGP 7 billion to the Ministry of Electricity to improve the distribution and transmission network to accommodate the new energy sources.
The Egyptian Prime Minister emphasised the significance of the planned electricity interconnection with Saudi Arabia. This interconnection will enable the two countries to share loads during peak hours. He confirmed that discussions are underway with Saudi authorities and that they are striving to complete the first phase of the project before next summer.
Meanwhile, The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently released a report indicating that Egypt’s economy is beginning to recover after a challenging period characterised by weak economic activity and foreign exchange shortages. The first half of the fiscal year 2023–2024 saw a slowdown in growth to an average of 2.5%; however, the IMF sees a path toward a stronger recovery.
The release of the IMF’s review on Egypt has identified several encouraging advancements. The market determines the value of the Egyptian pound since the official and parallel exchange rates were unified in early March. This has resulted in a significant increase in daily interbank foreign exchange turnover, a narrowing of the spread between the official rate and market-clearing rates, and elimination of the foreign exchange backlog at banks.