The Washington-based World Bank has approved a $500m loan to Cairo for a project to expand natural gas access to 1.5 million Egyptian households in eleven governorates.

The bank’s Egypt Household Natural Gas Connection Project supports Cairo’s programme to replace household consumption of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), which is mostly imported, with grid-connected natural gas.

Piped gas is considered a more convenient cooking fuel with higher reliability, and better health and safety benefits.

About 52 percent of the neighborhoods targeted by the project have poverty rates higher than Egypt’s national average, including three governorates - Sohag, Qena and Aswan - in Upper Egypt, where poverty levels are among the highest in the country.

Energy services

“We are pleased to help improve the delivery of energy services to the people of Egypt,” said Hartwig Schafer, World Bank country director for Egypt, Yemen and Djibouti. 

“Conversion to piped natural gas will help give households access to a safer, more reliable and cheaper supply of gas compared to buying LPG cylinders.” 

“The project will provide financial support to finance the connection charges in disadvantaged areas so that poor households can also connect to the gas grid, ”said Husam Mohamed Beides, the project’s task team Leader. 

“We are working closely with the European Union and the French Development Agency to ensure that this project is a success.  

According to the World Bank, over 75 per cent of Egypt’s households buy LPG cylinders from an inefficient distribution network characterised by persistent shortages, an informal market, and difficult physical conditions for handling cylinders.

In a statement, the World Bank said that the project will be especially helpful to people who have difficulty getting hold of LPG cylinders and transporting them, such as people with disabilities, the elderly, and women from vulnerable income groups, who often have to stand in line for long periods of time to purchase cooking gas.

The project aims to increase by more than 40 per cent, the number of households connected to the natural gas grid from 5.8 million today to 8.2 million households.

Egypt portfolio

The current portfolio of the World Bank in Egypt includes 25 projects for a total commitment of $4.9bn as well as 43 trust fund grants for a total commitment of $190.2m.

The World Bank finances projects for faster delivery of benefits to the people of Egypt in key sectors including energy, transport, water and sanitation, agriculture and irrigation as well as health and education