meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

Familiar realities threaten Egypt’s energy ambitions

7 February 2024

This package on Egypt's power sector also includes:

> Egypt to complete Gabal El Zeit wind farms sale
> Egypt president and Putin mark El Dabaa construction
> EBRD invests in 1.1GW Egypt wind farm
> Scatec in talks for Nagaa Hammadi solar project
> Team signs land deal for 1.1GW Egypt wind project
> Acwa Power moves forward with Egypt green hydrogen project

 

As of early 2024, Egypt appears to have come full circle in terms of providing electricity services to its citizens.

The country faced severe power shortages in 2013-14, which gave way to the fast-tracked construction of 14.4GW of gas-powered generation capacity in 2018. This, along with the increase in renewable energy capacity, resulted in a surplus of up to 25%, yet since late last year consumers have once again been experiencing power outages lasting up to two hours.

This time, however, the power outages – which began in the summer of 2023 and are expected to last until March this year – are not due to a capacity deficit.

The government-initiated load-shedding programme initially aimed to rein in rising electricity consumption and reduce pressure on the country's gas network.

According to the country’s Electricity & Renewable Energy Ministry, national electricity consumption reached 43,650MW in mid-July last year, up significantly from previous highs of about 31,000MW.

While the record-high consumption level is still way below the official generation installed capacity of close to 60,000MW, consumption levels of between 34,000MW and 36,000MW will require around 129-146 million cubic metres of gas and diesel a day.

Barring load-shedding, any increase in consumption beyond 36,000MW will require a commensurate increase in gas and diesel, which is understood to be beyond the government’s capacity to procure.

Crucially, the other side of the electricity rationing initiative has to do with the need to save gas for exports, to boost the government’s dollar reserves in the face of the ongoing currency crisis.

Frustration over the power cuts and their impact on job productivity and the overall economy has been growing over the past few months.

There are no magic pills, however, and any solution needs to start with broader economic and energy sector reforms, to improve the prospects of attracting investments, notes Jessica Obeid, a partner at Dubai-headquartered New Energy Consult.

“Reducing reliance on gas for domestic power generation and increasing renewable energy plus storage are critical, not only to reduce the shortage gap but also to improve energy security, since one gas field, Zohr, feeds almost half of the domestic needs,” she explains. “In the immediate term, doubling down on energy-efficient measures and demand-side management is needed.”

It is an awkward and unprecedented situation for the North African state, which has espoused a clear intention – and started executing relevant projects – to establish itself as a regional energy hub, exporting natural gas and electricity to neighbouring countries, as well as to Europe.

“The government has signaled its prioritisation of exports, although no economy can grow nor become a hub while dealing with energy shortages,” Obeid says.

“The Egyptian government has showcased that the focus is on economic revenues from gas exports, even if that is at the expense of the living conditions of the citizens. However, Egypt cannot realise its hefty regional ambitions without efficient measures and reforms to mend the high domestic reliance on gas, and the lower gas production prospects.”

Another expert on Egypt’s energy policies notes that the country is in a tough spot and “needs ideas to move ahead from this”.

In addition to its energy hub plans, Egypt could look into other opportunities such as setting up repair hubs for ships, as well as education centres to cater to the needs of those hubs, the expert suggests, while noting – as Obeid does – the need for wide-ranging reforms, including improving the rule of law and developing alternative sources of wealth and income.

Important milestones

Six months of electricity rationing makes it easy to overlook the cumulative – though, in hindsight, insufficient – steps that Egypt has taken to avoid falling once again into the power outage trap.

Egypt has one of the highest renewable energy penetration rates in relation to overall installed capacity in the Middle East and North Africa region. While this is commendable, it has only served to highlight the weakness of the country's electricity grid when it comes to handling intermittent renewable energy sources such as solar and wind.

Nonetheless, the country is continuing to build additional renewable energy capacity, including hydropower, and with the help of Russian financing, it has also embarked on the construction of its first nuclear power plant. These projects could replace the ageing oil and gas fleet, lowering the sector's emissions while also supporting the country's energy diversification and security agendas.

Egypt aims to be a global green hydrogen and ammonia hub, and signed preliminary agreements for over a dozen such schemes when it hosted the UN global climate summit, Cop27, in November 2022.

If these projects reach the execution stage, not only do they have the potential to advance the country’s ambition to be a global green energy hub, they will also help to attract much-needed dollars to fund its economic diversification plans.

However, the ability to implement reforms and develop bankable projects lies at the heart of the deployment of any technology in Egypt, points out Obeid.

“Egypt’s existing experience in hydrogen, and being part of that trade market, along with abundant renewable energy resources, a vast land [area] and the country’s geographic location are enablers of a hydrogen market," she says.

“Yet, Egypt’s economic and financial challenges have led to higher interest rates, lower lending capacity and higher costs for system components, and these need to be addressed first.”

Never say die 

Despite a bleak short- to medium-term outlook, some projects are moving ahead in Egypt.

The European Bank for Reconstruction & Development will invest $75m in equity in the Netherlands-based subsidiary of Egypt's Hassan Allam Utilities, which along with Saudi utility developer Acwa Power is co-developing a wind independent power producer scheme in the country's Gulf of Suez and Gabal El Zeit area.

Acwa Power also reached financial close for a 200MW solar photovoltaic facility in Kom Ombo in August last year, two years after the project was put on hold due to rising solar panel and freight costs.

Even the 505MW Amunet wind farm project, located in Ras Ghareb in the Gulf of Suez on the Red Sea coast, is moving ahead. A consortium of the UAE-based Amea Power and Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation last year enlisted Shanghai-headquartered Envision Energy to supply wind turbines for the project.

According to the New & Renewable Energy Authority (NREA), solar and wind projects with a total capacity of close to 3.5GW were under development in Egypt as of the end of 2023, while schemes totalling 39GW are in the planning stage. 

Hydrogen and ammonia

In November, Abu Dhabi-based Fertiglobe delivered what might have been the world's first internationally certified renewable ammonia from its pilot electrolyser site in Egypt to India. The ammonia will be used to produce near-zero-emissions synthetic soda ash – a key ingredient in laundry powder – for Unilever.

Several planned integrated green hydrogen projects in Egypt are in the pre-front-end engineering and design (pre-feed) stage.

One of the green ammonia projects is being developed by Germany's DAI Infrastruktur. To be located in East Port Said, the Ra green ammonia project will have a total production capacity of 2 million tonnes a year (mtpa) of green ammonia, of which 1.65 mtpa is expected to be based purely on renewable energy resources when complete.

DAI has signed a preliminary agreement with Siemens Energy, which plans to supply electrolysers, auxiliary plant systems and critical equipment making up the hydrogen island of the project.

DAI and UK-headquartered Freepan Holding are also understood to have signed an offtake agreement for the ammonia produced at the Ra plant. The 10-year offtake agreement covers 800,000 tonnes a year of ammonia, with the first green ammonia delivery to Freepan expected in 2028.

A similarly sized project is being developed by Amea Power in the coastal town of Ain Sokhna in the Suez governorate. The company is in the process of appointing pre-feed consultants and contractors that will undertake geotechnical, topography and environmental studies for the project.

Detailed studies are also under way for interconnections transporting clean energy from Egypt to Europe, as the latter seeks alternatives to Russian energy exports.

Stakeholders in these projects will continue to monitor the Egyptian government's management of its energy policies at home and abroad over the next few months as they decide the next steps in their investment plans.

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/11489597/main.jpg
Jennifer Aguinaldo

Register for MEED's guest program now to access this article.

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Contractors prepare bids for more Qiddiya infrastructure

    8 October 2026

     

    Saudi gigaproject developer Qiddiya Investment Company (QIC) has tendered a design-and-build contract covering infrastructure works at District 0 in Qiddiya City.

    The scope includes the design, supply, construction, testing, commissioning and defects liability period for Road I in District 17, Road Q in District 19 and the District 18 Ring Road.

    In total, the package covers approximately 17.4 kilometres of roads, including 1.4km of bridge structures.

    Contractors have until 14 October to submit proposals.

    Beirut-headquartered Dar Al-Handasah is the lead design consultant for districts 17 and 19, with a remit that also includes potable water and recycled water storage tanks and pumping stations.

    US-based Jacobs is the lead design consultant for the District 18 Ring Road.

    The tender is the third infrastructure package for Qiddiya’s District 0. The first two packages, tendered in March, remain under procurement, as MEED exclusively reported.

    MEED understands that bid evaluation for these packages is in its final stages and that awards are expected shortly.

    QIC is also advancing plans to develop additional assets at Qiddiya City.

    Last month, MEED exclusively reported that QIC had awarded an estimated $500m-$600m contract to build an e-games arena, known as the Fortress Arena.

    The scope of work includes the construction of an auditorium with a capacity of about 5,100 seats, as well as commercial areas, hospitality facilities and other associated infrastructure.

    The Fortress Arena is one of several major projects within the wider Qiddiya development.

    Other projects include the Dragon Ball theme park, Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Stadium, a horse-racing venue, a performing arts centre, the Speed Park, the National Tennis Centre, Six Flags Qiddiya City and Aquarabia water park.

    The project is a key part of Riyadh’s strategy to boost leisure tourism in the kingdom. According to UK analytics firm GlobalData, leisure tourism in Saudi Arabia has grown significantly in recent years.

    MEED’s October 2026 report on Saudi Arabia includes:

    > COMMENT: Saudi projects hold steady
    > GOVERNMENT: Riyadh looks to reset its regional defence outlook
    > ECONOMY: Conflict bolsters case for Saudi economic diversification
    > BANKING: Saudi lenders readjust to lower lending and deposit climate
    > UPSTREAM: Aramco upstream spending gathers pace
    > DOWNSTREAM: Sabic steps up Saudi petchems investment
    > POWER: Saudi Arabia’s power award activity slows
    > WATER: Saudi water sector hits sharp slowdown
    > CONSTRUCTION: Saudi construction defies the headwinds
    > TRANSPORT: Saudi infrastructure pushes forward amid conflict
    > DATABANK: Saudi data indicates project spending shift

    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20384978/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Chinese contractors begin Jordan rail construction

    8 October 2026

     

    Beijing-headquartered firms China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) and China First Highway Engineering Company (CFHEC) have started construction work on the Aqaba-Al-Shidiyeh-Maan Railway project in Jordan.

    The 403-kilometre rail network is divided into six packages. CCECC is executing packages one to four, while CFHEC is undertaking packages five and six.

    The scope of work covers constructing railway tracks, about 55 bridges, six tunnels and related structures.

    The project aims to link Aqaba with key mining and production sites and the Maan logistics zone, establishing an integrated system for transporting bulk cargo and containers between ports, production centres and inland logistics facilities.

    The network is expected to carry around 16 million tonnes of phosphate and potash each year from production sites to Aqaba’s ports.

    In April 2025, a French-Swiss joint venture of Egis and Arx was awarded the project’s design consultancy contract.

    The estimated $2.5bn project is being developed by the Jordan-UAE Railway Company, which is jointly owned by Abu Dhabi’s L’imad Holding and Jordanian entities including the Jordan Phosphate Mines Company, the Government Investments Management Company, the Social Security Investment Fund and the Arab Potash Company.

    Jordanian and UAE officials attended a groundbreaking ceremony held earlier this week to mark the formal start of construction work.

    READ THE OCTOBER 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    Industry and logistics drive development at Neom; Saudi Arabia’s investment priorities realign amid conflict; MEED’s 2026 power developer ranking.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the October 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20371915/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • Iraq discusses starting operations at $3.78bn refinery project

    8 October 2026

    Iraq’s Minister of Oil, Basem Muhammad Khudair Al-Abadi, has met with Japanese officials to discuss plans to commission the fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) unit at the Basra refinery upgrade project, according to a ministry statement.

    The meeting was attended by the Japanese Embassy’s executive officer as well as representatives from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) and Japan-based JGC, which is the main contractor on the project.

    According to the ministry, discussions focused on direct implementation steps and coordination between Iraqi authorities and the Japanese partners to bring the unit online using Japanese refining technologies.

    Iraq’s South Refineries Company (SRC) sent JGC notice of the main contract award for the Basra refinery upgrade project’s FCC package in August 2020.

    JGC was awarded the contract in consortium with South Korea’s Hyundai E&C.

    The official contract signing ceremony was held in Baghdad on 1 October 2020.

    The contract awarded to JGC, which uses the engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning model, was worth $3.78bn.

    Project delays

    The project has faced issues related to the ongoing regional conflict, which started when the US and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February.

    JGC evacuated its personnel from the site in the southern oil hub of Basra following the start of the regional war, stopping work on the project, which was in its final stages of construction.

    In August, JGC signed an agreement to restart work.

    The project will produce around 5 million litres a day of gasoline and 7 million litres a day of diesel.

    The FCC package is part of a broader project to upgrade the Basra refinery.

    Oil Ministry officials said in late 2025 that the Basra refinery upgrade project aims to slash Iraq’s fuel import bill and convert heavy refining residues into high-value petroleum products.

    The project site is located about 12 kilometres east of Iraq’s southern city of Basra.

    The wider upgrade project is installing new facilities on land adjacent to the existing Basra refinery, including a vacuum distillation unit and a diesel desulphurisation unit.

    In April 2021, France’s Axens won a contract to provide four process technologies to SRC for the Basra refinery upgrade project.

    The technologies that SRC selected are:

    • Diesel hydrotreatment unit (Prime-D)
    • Vacuum gasoil (VGO) hydrotreating unit
    • VGO fluid catalytic cracker unit
    • Oligomerisation unit (polynaphtha)

    In addition, Axens is providing catalysts and adsorbents and proprietary equipment, training and technical services.

    READ THE OCTOBER 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    Industry and logistics drive development at Neom; Saudi Arabia’s investment priorities realign amid conflict; MEED’s 2026 power developer ranking.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the October 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20366574/main.png
    Wil Crisp
  • Drilling resumes at Iraq’s Akkas field

    8 October 2026

     

    Drilling has resumed as part of the project to further develop Iraq’s Akkas gas field, according to industry sources.

    In March, MEED reported that development of the field had been disrupted by security issues related to the US and Israel’s war with Iran.

    Activity at the project site had been significantly reduced due to security concerns, which led to the evacuation of most non-Iraqi workers.

    Now, the project is progressing and drilling at the field is ongoing, sources said.

    One source said: “Many of the major issues that stopped drilling at the site have been dealt with in various ways, and the development of the field is proceeding.”

    Iraq held a ceremony in January to mark the start of drilling operations under the current phase of development. In July of the previous year, the Iraqi Oil Ministry announced a contract with US-based oilfield services provider SLB to develop the field. Under the agreement, SLB is drilling wells to raise initial output to 100 million cubic feet a day (cf/d), with a long-term production target of 400 million cf/d.

    The contract with SLB replaced a previous deal with Ukraine-based Ukrzemresurs, which has been terminated.

    It also covers the construction of surface infrastructure and pipelines to connect Akkas to central processing units.

    The gas produced at Akkas will fuel the Anbar combined-cycle power plant, which the Electricity Ministry is building.

    Akkas gas field development

    Located in western Anbar province, Akkas holds an estimated 5.6 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves. The field was discovered in 1992 and entered initial production in 1993, but efforts to develop it commercially have faced repeated delays.

    Development rights were originally awarded to a consortium of South Korea’s Kogas and Kazakhstan’s KazMunaiGas (KMG) during Iraq’s third licensing round in 2010. After KMG withdrew, Kogas took over as sole operator under revised contractual terms before work was subsequently halted.

    In April 2024, the Oil Ministry signed an agreement with Ukraine’s Ukrzemresurs targeting 100 million cf/d within two years and 400 million cf/d within four years. However, the deal faced strong domestic political resistance.

    Iraq’s parliamentary Oil and Gas Committee opposed the award, with committee member Ali Al-Mashkour telling Shafaq News Agency: “This contract involves a great waste of Iraq’s wealth, and there will be a waste of Iraq’s oil, and this confirms that Iraq is once again failing to choose reputable companies to work with in the most important economic field in the country.”

    He added: “We will work to uncover and expose the suspicions in this contract during the next stage, especially since this contract was made by some representatives for specific interests, which we will reveal soon with evidence.”

    The deal was subsequently terminated, paving the way for the current contract with SLB.

    The development of Akkas is central to Baghdad’s broader ambition to transition from a net gas importer into an exporter. Iraq remains heavily dependent on gas imports from Iran to meet domestic electricity demand. Both the US and Saudi Arabia have backed Iraq’s efforts to develop non-associated gas fields to reduce its economic and energy dependence on Tehran.

    READ THE OCTOBER 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    Industry and logistics drive development at Neom; Saudi Arabia’s investment priorities realign amid conflict; MEED’s 2026 power developer ranking.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the October 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20366494/main5816.jpg
    Wil Crisp
  • Neom extends bid deadline for Oxagon wastewater plant

    8 October 2026

     

    Neom has extended the bid submission deadline for a contract to build a wastewater treatment plant for Oxagon, its industrial cluster.

    According to a source, the new deadline is 25 October. The original deadline was 2 October.

    Enowa, Neom’s energy and water utility, is tendering the contract.

    The industrial wastewater treatment package will have an initial capacity of 35,000 cubic metres a day (cm/d), supplied in modular trains of 5,000 cm/d each. A separate sanitary wastewater treatment package will have a capacity of 1,000 cm/d.

    The contract is structured as a design-build-operate project and covers the supply, installation and commissioning of industrial and sanitary wastewater treatment packages, as well as three years of operation and maintenance.

    According to sources, local contractor Alfanar, Beijing-based PowerChina and France-based Veolia are among the companies preparing bids.

    The project follows an earlier tender for the Oxagon Village Water Recycling Plant, which was cancelled despite contractors submitting bids in 2024.

    MEED reported at the time that PowerChina, Alfanar and Cairo-headquartered Orascom had submitted bids for that project.

    The earlier scheme included truck-receiving facilities, pretreatment, biological treatment using food chain reactor technology, tertiary treatment, sludge handling and recycled-water storage.

    The latest procurement appears to take a reworked approach to wastewater treatment at Oxagon Industrial Quarter. It replaces the previous engineering, procurement and construction scheme with an interim modular and demountable facility.

    The plant is designed to provide “interim wastewater treatment” capacity for Oxagon Industrial Quarter as industrial development progresses.

    As MEED understands, this includes treatment systems that can be installed and subsequently removed or relocated as requirements at Oxagon evolve. The plant can be expanded to a maximum capacity of 45,000 cm/d.

    The tender documents also state that Neom may consider export credit agency (ECA) financing for the project. The strength of bidders’ ECA financing proposals will form part of the commercial evaluation.

    READ THE OCTOBER 2026 MEED BUSINESS REVIEW – click here to view PDF

    Industry and logistics drive development at Neom; Saudi Arabia’s investment priorities realign amid conflict; MEED’s 2026 power developer ranking.

    Distributed to senior decision-makers in the region and around the world, the October 2026 edition of MEED Business Review includes:
    To see previous issues of MEED Business Review, please click here
    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/20347018/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall