Brace for at least another month of blackouts: The ongoing rolling blackouts will continue until at least the end of August as the summer heatwave continues to put pressure on the country’s electricity network, Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly said at a presser on Thursda y to announced a n ew batch of measures a imed at curbing demand ( watch, runtime: 24:22).

That’s the new best case scenario: “The country will carry out the procedures announced during August and we hope that by September, alongside the expected drop in temperatures, the situation will begin to go back to normal,” Madbouly said. Daily power cuts of one or two hours will continue as long as the mercury is above 35°C, he added. An Electricity Ministry official said last we ek the power cuts would likely last until the middle of August.

The worst case? The blackouts could extend to the middle of September if the current temperatures don’t dip, c abinet spokesperson Nader Saad said in a televised interview last night ( watch, runtime, 5:35).

More clarity coming: The Electricity Ministry will share a schedule of the power cuts planned for each area, which should be published no later than tomorrow.

MORE MEASURES TO COPE-

#1- More mazut imports: The government will import an extra USD 250-300 mn of mazut by the end of August after exhausting its supplies of the heavy oil. “We have used up all that we have of mazut and have started using more of our natural gas,” Madbouly said . “This expense was not accounted for in the current state budget, creating additional strains on [public finances].”

#2- WFH Sundays: Wherever possible, civil servants who are not customer-facing will work remotely on Sundays starting ne xt Sunday, 6 August, to reduce the government’s electricity consumption. Madbouly urged private-sector employers to do the same.

#3- Rationing electricity: The state will start cutting back on its electricity consumption, reducing street lighting and keeping ACs at 25°C across all government buildings. Madbouly has also directed the Youth and Sports Ministry to reduce electricity use in sports facilities, stadiums, and arenas by scheduling matches before sunset.

#4- A crisis needs a committee: The cabinet has set up a crisis committee to follow up on the issue on a daily basis.

Remember: The government has already introduced a number of measures aimed at reduc ing the electrical load. More gas has been freed up for the grid by reducing supplies to industrial producers, including fertilizer and cement producers. It has also increased the use of mazut from 20k tons per day to 34k tons.

MORE FROM MADBOULY-

It’s only residential areas that are going dark: Hospitals and other strategic facilities will not have their electricity cut, the PM said.

Sahel and the Red Sea are also being spared: The lights will be kept on at coastal areas, according to Madbouly, who said that blackouts in these areas risk impacting the tourism industry.

The energy shortage in numbers: The heatwave has pushed daily electricity consumption to almost 36 GW, which requires some 145 mn cubic meters of natural gas and mazut a day, up more than 12% from the 129 mn cubic-meter average over the past year, Madbouly said. If the state had not introduced daily power cuts, demand for natural gas and mazut could have surged as high as 165 mn cubic meters, he added.

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