On Sunday, Egypt’s Petroleum Minister Karim Badawi announced that the country had cut its 2040 renewables target to 40 per cent to prioritise natural gas.
In June 2024, the COP27 host had previously pledged to increase renewable energy capacity to 58 per cent by 2040; however, this target has now been slashed.
Prior to the June announcement from the then-Electricity Minister Mohamed Shaker, Egypt had announced it would raise renewable energy production to 42 per cent of its energy mix by 2035. This target was then brought closer to 2030.
According to Reuters, this news comes as Egypt works to “rebuild trust with foreign oil firms,” whose local operations slowed after a hard currency shortage left the country with billions of dollars in arrears.
“This is a message to all of us to work together to increase discoveries and attract more investments through the bids being offered for exploration, aiming to achieve new discoveries in the region, which holds more wealth, particularly natural gas,” Badawi is quoted by Reuters as saying at the opening session of the Mediterranean Energy Conference 2024.
Egypt’s energy mix is mostly gas-generated. According to Climate Action Tracker (CAT), the country is responsible for over a third of total fossil gas consumption in Africa and is also the continent’s second-largest gas producer.
According to Reuters, Badawi has met with several international companies since taking office. These include Eni, one of the country’s largest energy sector investors. In 2023, the oil and gas company announced plans to invest $7.7 billion in Egypt’s energy sector over the next four years. The Italian energy giant plans to start drilling new wells in Zohr— Egypt’s largest gas field—in early 2025.
Renewables currently make up just 12 per cent of the country’s energy mix, with the lion’s share coming from hydropower.
However, a number of solar deals have been signed in recent months, including one in September between AMEA Power and the Egyptian Electricity Transmission for a 1,000MW solar PV power plant and 600MWh BESS located in the Benban area of Aswan Governorate. According to AMEA Power, the project will be the largest Solar PV and BESS project in Africa.
Last month, Egypt also granted Masdar approval to develop a $900m solar project in the country.
CAT, an independent scientific project that tracks government climate action, has deemed Egypt as “Critically insufficient”.
“If all countries were to follow Egypt’s approach, warming would exceed 4°C,” says CAT in its assessment.