Egypt Electricity Ministry announced on Saturday that Egypt has raised electricity service charges for higher-use residential consumers and commercial users in response to the global spike in energy prices caused by the war in the Gulf region involving Israel, the United States, and Iran.
According to a report by Reuters, this measure is part of the country’s latest effort to mitigate fiscal pressure from high oil import costs.
The Ministry said in a statement that low-consumption households are exempt from the charge increase. Electricity prices for residential consumption bands of up to 2,000 kilowatt-hours per month will remain unchanged, while tariffs for higher residential brackets will rise by an average of 16%. Commercial electricity prices will increase by an average of about 20%.
Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said in March that Egypt’s energy import bill had more than doubled since the war began, forcing the government to raise fuel prices, increase public transport fares, and slow some state projects to ease pressure on public finances.
Egypt began implementing measures in March to rationalize energy consumption, including earlier closing hours for commercial venues, as global oil prices rose amid the conflict.
Countries in Africa, including Ethiopia, have introduced new measures to adapt to skyrocketing global oil prices.
