Israel gas cuts force Egypt into emergency summer fuel imports

Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum has decided to fast-track the delivery of approximately 3 million cubic meters of liquefied natural gas (LNG)—equivalent to 63 billion cubic feet of gaseous natural gas—during June, scrambling to compensate for a sudden drop in Israeli gas imports and stabilize the national electricity grid, according to an official familiar with the ministry’s gas import operations.

The state-run Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) has reached an agreement with international suppliers to accelerate the arrival of 60% of the contracted volumes to this week, rather than receiving them over a month or more as originally scheduled, the source said.

The emergency measures follow a sudden reduction in Egypt’s imports of Israeli gas by about 250 million cubic feet per day (cf/d) at the beginning of the month. The supply drop, attributed to sudden routine maintenance at Israel’s Tamar and Leviathan gas fields, has presented Cairo with a critical challenge as it struggles to deliver on the electricity minister’s promise to keep the lights on for residential consumers during the grueling summer heat.

Securing these urgent shipments will cost approximately $1.1 billion, a financial burden to be borne entirely by the Ministry of Petroleum, the source said on condition of anonymity. The capital-intensive imports are required to keep Egypt’s conventional power plants running as surging temperatures drive up domestic demand for air conditioning.

The accelerated shipments are expected to supply between 2 billion and 2.1 billion cf/d. The fuel will be received across four regasification vessels before being pumped into the national grid to supply power stations and heavy, energy-intensive industries, the source added.

Egypt’s domestic natural gas production currently hovers around 4 billion cf/d, while daily consumption exceeds 6.4 billion cf/d, leaving a structural deficit of 2.4 billion cf/d, according to the official. This supply gap is projected to widen further as record-high summer temperatures continue to drive up domestic energy consumption.