Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources plans to upgrade five fuel oil pipelines serving power plants during the 2026/27 fiscal year at a cost of up to $240 million, as part of efforts to secure alternatives to natural gas after the attack in Damietta, a ministry source familiar with fuel distribution told Al Manassa.
Natural gas supplies to conventional power plants fell by about 350 million cubic feet a day because of the Damietta attack, forcing plants to burn more fuel oil to maintain electricity output and sharply increasing demand for the alternative fuel.
On July 29, a fire was reported aboard two vessels at Damietta Port: the US-owned Energos Winter, a floating storage and regasification unit, and the GasLog Salem, an LNG carrier. The government later said the fire was caused by a drone attack “for which no party has claimed responsibility.”
The source, who asked not to be named, said efforts to compensate for the gas shortage after the Damietta incident pushed fuel oil consumption to about 30,000 tons a day, roughly three times its pre-attack level.
The source said the pipeline upgrades are intended to provide an alternative to natural gas for power generation and ensure steady fuel supplies to plants, particularly during the summer months when electricity consumption rises.
The five pipelines connect domestic refineries in Alexandria, Mostorod, Suez, Assiut, and Cairo with power plants, allowing fuel oil to be pumped directly from refineries to generating units, the source said.
Domestic fuel oil consumption normally ranges from 8,000 to 10,000 tons a day, but can jump to between 28,000 and 30,000 tons during peak periods because of severe heat waves or natural gas shortages, according to the source. Domestic production covers about 75% to 85% of demand, with the remainder secured through short-term import contracts.
The ministry’s move comes as Egypt faces a gap between natural gas production and domestic consumption. Production currently stands at about 4.2 billion cubic feet a day, compared with consumption of about 6.2 billion cubic feet, forcing the government to secure imported gas and provide alternative fuels for power plants when supplies fall.
