Manufacturers are looking to press the government once again on repricing natural gas to industry, with the Union of Egyptian Investors Associations planning to meet with Oil Ministry officials sometime in the next few days to push for the issue. An official from EGAS tells Al Mal that it is unlikely that the government will respond to their pleas, saying that it imports gas at a price of USD 7 per mmBTU and buys gas from local producers at a price of USD 6 per mmBTU. The official added that the government currently supplies manufacturers with gas at between USD 3-7 per mmBTU, depending on the industry. The Ismail cabinet had made a concession to steel factories last year, promising to lower the price to USD 4.5 from USD 7. Subsidizing inefficient industrial players at the same time as consumers pay more for energy would be political suicide.

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