Egypt's natural gas production declined by 14.3 percent in May 2014 compared to the same month a year earlier while consumption decreased by less than 9 percent, according to the monthly bulletin released by the cabinet's Information and Decision Support Centre (IDSC). Natural gas exports decreased by 57 percent to $57 million in May compared to $133 million in May 2013. Meanwhile, oil production witnessed a slighter decrease, down by only 0.6 percent while consumption grew by 5.6 percent. Exports, however, increased by a significant 27.7 percent to reach $435 million. Egypt's electricity production increased in May 2014 by 2.6 percent compared to the same period of the previous year to reach 14.49 billion kilowatts per hour, the report said. Production in May increased by 9.7 percent compared to April. Consumption, on the other hand, increased month to month by a slower pace of 4.6 percent in May – but was still slightly down compared to May 2013. Egyptian households are still witnessing frequent power cuts. Egypt's electricity consumption grew by 95 percent in the period from 2001/02 to 2009/10 to reach a total of 127 billion kilowatts per hour, according to a previous report from IDSC. The growth in Egyptian electricity consumption was more than three times the international and Arab-world averages, both of which stood at 31 percent for the same period. Egypt's energy crisis has intensified since 2011 with repeated shortages of fuel and cooking gas cylinders as well as frequent electricity cuts. A deal between and the Norwegian firm Hoegh to secure a floating import terminal of liquefied natural gas (LNG) needed for power plants has been delayed, according to Reuters. Earlier this month, Egypt's government introduced a series of subsidy cuts – especially for energy – in order to trim its budget deficit. The price of the lowest-value fuel, Octane 80, was increased by 78 percent, while the cost of diesel went up by 64 percent. Electricity and gas prices were also raised. Electricity consumption accounts for more than 55 percent of the country's total natural gas production. In response to public anger over the fuel price hikes, the government said the increases should help regulate consumption and reduce fuel smuggling. http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/106474.aspx
