Egypt's PM says electricity problem will improve by Sunday

Egypt's premier has promised a gradual improvement to the otherwise worsening problem of power cuts, with tangible results as soon as next week.

Speaking to reporters from the presidential palace on Wednesday, Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab said he met with President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, who asked for a time-bound plan to tackle the problem.

Mahlab said Egyptians will start feeling the progress made as of next Sunday.

Some 4,810 megawatts (mW) of electricity will be added to the nationwide grid by November, which should ease the gap between production and consumption, said Mohamed Shaker, minister of electricity, at the press conference.

Shaker also underlined the importance of diversifying the sources of electricity production due to insufficiency in natural gas. He suggested the use of liquified natural gas (LNG), nuclear energy and solar energy.