Egyptians bid farewell to daily power cuts until mid-September

Starting from Sunday 21/7/2024, the Egyptian government will suspend its load-shedding program for the summer until mid-September, as announced by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly last week. In June, the government extended power cuts to around three hours per day nationwide in response to increased consumption levels caused by the scorching heatwave and fuel shortages. Amid public outcry, the Cabinet has unveiled a $1.18 billion plan to import the necessary fuel to ensure uninterrupted power generation throughout the summer season. The load-shedding program was initiated last summer, resulting in daily power cuts across most of the country, except for major tourist destinations in the North Coast, Alamein, Sharm El-Sheikh, and Hurghada. During a press conference on Wednesday, the prime minister stated that power cuts would be limited to possible disruptions in certain areas due to technical issues exacerbated by the sizzling heat. Madbouly reassured the public that the government would promptly address a ny emerging issues. He emphasized that the daily electricity consumption over the past period has exceeded 37.5 GW, representing a 12 percent increase compared to the previous year. He pledged that the state will fully resolve the electricity crisis by the end of this year, with plans to add 3-4 GW to the electricity grid by the summer of 2025. "I want to reassure citizens that we are already working on a plan that takes into consideration the summer of 2025," Madbouly said. The prime minister further noted that the country's expected energy gap for the following summer amounts to about 4 GW. To bridge this gap, the government intends to rely on clean and renewable energy projects currently being implemented in collaboration with the private sector. Source: State Information Service Egypt