Why are Electricity Bills Soaring in Egypt?

In living rooms, shops, and taxis across Egypt, the same question keeps coming up: “I did not change anything with my lifestyle. So, why is my electricity bill this high?”

Electricity in Egypt has gone through a significant transformation in the last decade. The country moved from frequent blackouts and relatively cheap, heavily subsidised power to more reliable and costly electricity that reflects its cost of production. Prices now more closely track the actual cost of generation and delivery, as reflected in the regulator’s tariff tables effective September 2024.

Since 2016, the Egyptian pound has weakened, fuel has become more expensive, and the state has slowly reduced subsidies. These circumstances are what now appear on your monthly electricity bill.

What actually changed with the bill

According to a report by Reuters, in August 2024, Egypt raised the electricity tariff for households by up to a 50 percent increase, which did not come as a single flat jump. Egypt uses a system of “slabs,” where the price per kilowatt-hour depends on how much a resident consumes. Lower use is charged at a lower rate, higher use at a higher rate. 

The government raised the price of several slabs at once as part of its plan to gradually remove subsidies to meet commitments to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other lenders. 

The raise has meant two consequences for a household.

 First, if you have moved into a higher slab over the years, for example, because of air conditioners or more appliances, the price you pay for each extra unit is now much higher than before. 

Second, even within the same slab, the actual tariff has been increased more than once in recent years, so the same consumption can still produce a bigger bill.