(Photo by Hassan Ibrahim)
The eminent shortage of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders is expected to end in three days, according to Minister of Supply and Domestic Trade Khaled Hanafy Monday.
Hanafy added that the government has also pumped more than the norm in butane gas supplies.
In an interview with Dream satellite channel, Hanafy also said that the additional quantities of natural gas are meant to compensate the recent supply shortfalls. He pointed out that the LPG cylinders shipments were suspended for almost 11 days due to bad weather conditions.
“It does not mean the crisis will be permanently resolved, but it will begin to ease,” he said.
Mahmoud Abdel Aziz, Chairman of the Control and Distribution Sector in the Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade, said there is a gradual improvement in the LPG cylinder shortage. He noted that the ministry has succeeded in providing 95% of the citizens’ needs of LPG cylinders.
Egypt recently saw a renewed butane cylinders crisis, with overcrowded queues in front of warehouses a common scene. Media reports said the situation was exacerbated in Upper Egypt and rural areas, where the price of a cylinder reached EGP 50 due to the exploitation of the black market.
“Two days ago, I didn’t reach any of the LPG distributers and my butane cylinder was empty, I stayed two days until I found one for EGP 60,” said Hamed Mahmoud, a 52-year-old engineer.
President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi has said that the current butane gas shortage crisis in Egypt was due to low temperatures and inclement weather, which delayed the butane shipments.
Around 50 % of the country’s butane gas is shipped from Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Libya.
