There will be no gas shortage problems for any factories in Egypt by the end of November, Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said in a speech on Sunday.
Factories in Egypt that rely heavily on gas to generate power have been struggling, with some halting production for extended periods, due to a shortage of gas supplies.
"End of November, there will be no gas problems for any factory in Egypt, not the current ones nor the ones that will be built," he said. Sisi gave no details to explain the expected improvement in gas supplies.
Falling oil and gas production coupled with rising consumption have forced Egypt, which was once an energy exporter, to divert supplies to the domestic market. It is now a net energy importer.
State-owned EGAS has been forced to ration gas supplies to industry, crippling production and hampering Egypt's economic recovery as many factories have been forced to halt production at times due to the shortage of gas.
Egypt's Trade and Industry Minister Tarek Kabil said earlier on Sunday that production at steel firms had been almost halted for the past four months due to gas shortages, but said that they had resumed production last week.
Electricity generation is also a problem for Egypt with the country facing regular power cuts in the summer months when demand is usually higher. Sisi said the country needs 150 billion Egyptian pounds to solve its electricity problem in the coming years.
