Gas shortage puts Egypt's fragile economic recovery at risk
(MENAFN) A USD50 billion bailout has been instrumental in preventing a deepening of Egypt's economic crisis. However, the nation now faces a mounting energy shortage that threatens to deplete crucial foreign currency reserves essential for its recovery.
Egypt, the most populous country in the Arab world, is in the delicate early phases of an economic revival following substantial financial commitments that offered the country's leadership a fresh opportunity to address its challenges.
President Abdel Fattah El Sisi is confronted with the task of addressing the electricity shortages that plagued Egypt last year, triggering widespread public discontent.
Once an exporter of energy, Egypt now struggles to produce sufficient gas to sustain its electricity systems, particularly during increasingly sweltering summers. The previous year recorded record-breaking temperatures, necessitating power cuts lasting up to two hours and prompting Egypt to cease its liquefied natural gas exports during the season. Experts anticipate that 2024 will bring even greater challenges.
Recent reports from a UK-based news agency reveal that Egypt has initiated the procurement of LNG cargoes, which it utilizes to generate electricity for air conditioning, unusually early in the year to mitigate chronic disruptions.
Yet another summer marked by extensive power outages would compound the strain on a populace already grappling with soaring inflation, a significantly devalued currency, and a surge in domestic fuel costs.
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