The Decline of Egyptian Gas Exports in May 2023
The value of Egyptian gas exports (including natural gas and liquefied gas) declined for the fourth consecutive month in May last year (2023) due to declining export values and a number of other factors.
Decrease in Gas Exports
Today, Tuesday, August 8 (2023), official data showed that the value of Egypt’s natural and liquefied gas exports fell by 69.7% year on year during May, according to the Foreign Trade Bulletin released by the Central Agency. on public mobilization and statistics.
According to the Specialized Energy Platform, total exports, including Egyptian gas, were about $3.38 billion last May (2023) compared to $4.28 billion in the same period last year (2022).
The decline in the value of Egyptian gas exports (including natural and liquefied gas) contributed to a 20.9% decline in the value of the country’s total exports in May last year, after falling more than 44.8% in April and down 34.6%. % in March, as the current decline is the fourth respectively.
Notably, Egypt’s gas exports were down 75.6% year-on-year in April 2023 and 67.9% in March, following a first decline in February 2023, down 33.3% year-on-year, according to data tracked by Energy platform. , Nisha.
It is worth noting that the value of Egyptian gas exports increased by 4.8% in January 2023 compared to the same period last year in 2022. However, this increase was less than the sales volume recorded last December 2022.
In December last year, foreign gas sales increased by 47.3% after declining by about 13.3% year-on-year in November 2022, compared to a 14.4% increase in October compared to the same period. 2021.
Reasons for the Decrease
The Monthly Foreign Trade Data Bulletin for the month of May (2023) showed a decrease in the value of Egyptian gas exports among total exports due to a decrease in the value of some commodities, according to what was tracked by the specialized energy platform.
At the same time, a recent report showed that Egypt’s gas production fell to its lowest level in 3 years during the first 5 months of 2023, coinciding with a power outage crisis caused by increased demand due to warmer than usual temperatures. limits, according to what Reuters has published.
Data from the Foreign Trade Bulletin released by Egypt’s Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics revealed a continued rise in the cost of Egypt’s imports of Israeli gas since May 2023.
Imports of Israeli Gas
Israeli gas imports by Egypt recorded an increase of 21.3% in May last year 2023 compared to the same period last year 2022, as Egypt is one of the main destinations for Israeli gas exports and imports gas from Tel Aviv through pipelines, before-exporting it again after request.
At the same time, the data point to a slowdown in the growth of Egypt’s Israeli gas imports, as it recorded a 70% year-on-year increase in February, compared to a 101.6% increase, reaching $213.6 million per year. January 2023 compared to $105.9 million in the same period (same as 2022).
Imports of Oil Products
As for Egypt’s imports of oil products in May 2023, they decreased by 19.8%, and the total value of Egyptian imports in May decreased by 9.4%, reaching $7.12 billion compared to $7.85 billion for the same month of last year.
Source: agencies