Egypt considers activating automatic pricing for natural gas every 4 months

CAIRO – 31 October 2021: Egypt is considering activating the automatic pricing mechanism for natural gas every 3 or 4 months, according to Petroleum Minister Tarek El Molla.

“We are primarily interested in supporting the national industry and providing all the capabilities it needs so that natural gas is part of the companies’ success,” el-Molla said in an interview with Asharq Business.

The government was considering implementing the automatic pricing mechanism on a 6-month scale, but revised it to be between 3 and 4 months.

El-Molla added that the government is trying to provide support and give the industrial sector all the capabilities it needs to ensure its success, according to the minister.

Egypt does not look at natural gas as a means of profit, but as an energy source at an affordable price, the Minister of Petroleum added.

Last Friday, the government decided to raise the prices of natural gas for iron and steel plants, fertilizers and petrochemicals by 27.8 percent to $5.75 per million thermal units.

The government set the price of gas for other industrial activities at $4.75 per million thermal units.

The former factory gas price was $4.5.

Global gas prices have recently witnessed increases amid a global inflation and supply crisis, and the global price of natural gas is currently $5.43 per million thermal units.