The government increased gas supplies to fertilizer and petrochemical plants from 650 million cubic feet a day in May 2026 to about 800 million cubic feet a day in June, a 23% rise, a source at the Ministry of Petroleum told Al Manassa.
The source, who asked not to be named, said the government was keen to raise supplies so factories could meet their export contracts, especially amid growing global demand for fertilizer and petrochemical products.
Last month, the Official Gazette published a government decision to impose export duties of $90 per ton on exports of all types of nitrogenous fertilizers for three months, following a move in April to allow gas flows to fertilizer and petrochemical plants to rise by 17% compared to March.
The government also raised gas prices for factories by around 21% in April, to $8.5 per million British thermal units, to benefit from increased exports despite rising domestic prices.
Fertilizer prices surged from 23,000 Egyptian pounds (about $460) to 34,000 pounds per ton in April alone, continued climbing in May to reach 38,000 pounds, before falling by 10,000 pounds in recent weeks.
The Export Council for Chemical Industries and Fertilizers said last week that exports reached $3.76 billion between January and April 2026, up from $3.31 billion in the same period last year, a growth rate of 14%.
The council said the government is currently working to balance the needs of the electricity sector and the industrial sector by allocating specific monthly liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments to factories, with total cargoes estimated at 600,000 cubic meters of LNG a month, equivalent to nearly 13 billion cubic feet of natural gas.
Egypt’s natural gas production has declined since 2023, pushing supplies below local consumption, estimated at 6 billion cubic feet a day. The shortfall has caused repeated power cuts and reduced production in some industrial activities, including fertilizers and petrochemicals.
The government is trying to secure energy supplies for vital sectors amid regional challenges that are putting pressure on supply chains, the source added, while also attempting to maintain foreign currency inflows by supporting industrial exports, especially in energy-intensive sectors.
He noted that natural gas production ranges between 4 billion and 4.2 billion cubic feet a day, all of which is directed to the local market, especially conventional power plants, while the rest of the market’s consumption gap is covered through two main sources, Israeli gas and LNG shipments.
In August 2025, Israel’s NewMed Energy, one of the partners in Israel’s Leviathan natural gas field, announced an agreement to export Israeli gas to Egypt worth $35 billion, Israel’s largest export deal ever.
While the original contract stipulated that Israel would export approximately 60 billion cubic feet to Egypt by 2030, the amended agreement extended the arrangement to 2040, committing Israel to exporting 130 billion cubic feet.
