Egypt’s Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy has approved a plan to cut natural gas consumption at power plants by about 100 million cubic feet a day in 2026 by relying more heavily on renewable energy, to reduce the impact of war-related supply disruptions, especially to Israeli gas supplies, a source at the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) told Al Manassa.
The move comes as Egypt tries to reduce its exposure to supply shocks after Israel halted gas flows to Egypt at the end of February before resuming exports on a limited scale. It is also part of a broader government push to accelerate a long-term shift toward cheaper, more sustainable energy sources, a source at the Ministry of Electricity familiar with the plan said.
Under pressure from the current crisis, “companies operating in the renewable energy sector have been directed to speed up projects with capacities ranging from 3 to 3.3 gigawatts this year,” the Electricity Ministry source said, asking not to be named.
The source added that between 2,000 and 2,200 megawatts are due to enter commercial operation in summer 2026 to meet peak seasonal demand, with the rest of the projects to be completed before the end of the fourth quarter of the same year.
The source put the investment needed to bring that capacity online at about $1.9 billion, to be provided through partnerships with foreign investors.
Egypt has expanded electricity generation capacity from non-conventional sources through policies aimed at boosting renewable energy, with that capacity increasing from 3,658 megawatts in 2015 to 9,366 megawatts in 2025.
But the gas savings would still represent only a limited share of total power plant consumption. The EGAS source, who also asked not to be named, said natural gas use at power plants currently ranges between 3 billion and 3.2 billion cubic feet a day.
“Natural gas is the backbone of Egypt’s electricity sector, accounting for about 75% to 82% of the country’s power generation capacity. Any disruption in supplies therefore directly threatens the stability of the power grid and industrial sectors in the domestic market,” the EGAS source said.
The government is targeting a rise in renewable energy’s share of total generated power to about 42% by 2030, from about 20% now, which will require adding substantial capacity each year alongside upgrades to transmission and distribution networks to absorb growing output from clean sources.
