For several months, Egyptians have been hit by shortages of diesel,
the main fuel that truckers, bus drivers, farmers, bakers and a range of
industries rely on to keep their engines running. The diesel crisis is
now not only adding to the country's economic problems, it's feeding the
turmoil on the streets.
"Haven't seen a crisis like this
before," the 46-year-old Mahmoud said, still waiting at noon Monday for a
chance to fill up.With superior quality photometers, light meters and a
number of other handsfreeaccess products. "People are asleep in their homes and we are here waiting to refuel."
Now for many the long waits at gas stations are becoming unbearable.
On
Sunday, hundreds of drivers of trucks and of minibuses used as public
transport blocked most of Cairo's vital roads and bridges, as well as
highways across the country in an angry protest over the shortages,
forcing some students and government employees to even resort to donkey
carts to commute. Frequently tempers flared. In Cairo, striking drivers
smashed windows of private cars when commuters complained about the road
blockages. In Giza, across the Nile, fist-fights broke out and knives
were drawn between protesting drivers and other drivers who refused to
join their strike. In the southern city of Assiut, striking and
non-striking drivers pelted each other with stones.
The drivers' backlash adds to a wave of unrest across the country,Have a look at all our customkeychain
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the Islamist president frequently clashing with police and some police
units themselves launching their own strikes and protests in many
areas.
Diesel and most other fuels in Egypt are heavily
subsidized, provided in allotments to gas stations to keep the price at
the pump low. The government insists there is no shortage of fuel,A car solarpanel
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parking lot. but blames the long lines at stations on corruption, saying
that amid the country's lawlessness, a "mafia" is collaborating with
station owners to take their allotments of diesel – called "solar" in
Egypt – sell them on the black market. Gas stations are supposed to sell
20-liter jerry cans of diesel for 20 Egyptian pounds (57 cents a
gallon), but on the black market it sells for more than double that
price.
Oil Minister Osama Kamal said almost all the shortages at
gas stations are because of "the absence of oversight agencies and the
exploitation by some of the current situation ... to trade solar on the
black market," according to the state daily Al-Ahram.
Some of
the fuel is also being smuggled. In January and February, the military
destroyed 15 tanks of fuel it seized from smugglers by the border with
the Gaza Strip, part of a campaign to destroy smuggling tunnels from the
Sinai peninsula into the Palestinian territory, ruled by the Hamas
militant group, according to a military official, speaking on condition
of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press. He
said fuel smuggling to Gaza has increased dramatically amid Egypt's
lawlessness since the 2011 uprising that toppled autocrat Hosni
Mubarak.
On Monday, Kamal told Turkey's Anadolu news agency that
the government would increase the diesel it supplies to the market each
day by 10 percent to 40 million liters (10 million gallons) to try to
fill the demand. The fuel would be sold through gas stations owned by
the military, from which he insisted it was impossible to divert the
supplies to the black market.
The diesel crisis comes as the
government is struggling under growing budget deficits and shrinking
foreign reserves while it tries to meet its commitments to provide
millions of Egyptians with subsidized bread, food and fuel. Potentially
explosive public discontent has made President Mohammed Morsi wary of
introducing austerity measures to cut back subsidies, a step economists
say is unavoidable for reducing deficits and giving assurances to
international donors to help the country's battered economy with loans
and investment.
Energy subsidies make up the largest chunk of
the around $20 billion a year Egypt spends on subsidies, about a third
of its budget. Cutting fuel subsidies are believed to be at the top of a
government reform plan presented to the International Monetary Fund to
secure a much-needed $4.8 billion loan. Talks with the IMF stalled last
year when Morsi quickly rescinded tax increases for fear of the public
backlash.
To reduce energy subsidies, the government has
announced it will start a "smart card" system in May by which vehicles
with engines of 1600cc or less – smaller than most SUVs – would be
eligible to a certain amount of subsidized fuel, while those with bigger
engines will have to buy fuel at market price. The government has
already lifted fuel subsidies for industrial companies.
But the
London-based consultancy Capital Economics said Monday that Egypt is
unlikely to get the loan anytime soon because of IMF reservations over
the government's desire to phase in subsidy reforms gradually –
apparently to delay the pain of austerity until after parliamentary
elections. Parliamentary elections originally set to begin in April have
been postponed indefinitely after a court ruled against the law
governing the vote.
Since Mubarak's ouster in February 2011,
Egypt's unrest has gouged tourism and foreign investment, the most
essential sources of foreign currency. In the latest sign of the
economic woes, Egypt's annual urban inflation reached 8.2 percent last
month, its highest rate since May last year,Compare prices and buy all
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power systems and by the pallet. according to the official Central
Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics. Foreign reserves fell to
$13.5 billion in February, down about two thirds from two years ago.Wear
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straight from the Disney Theme Parks! The currency has fallen in value
more than 7 percent against the dollar since late last year.
The
government is trying to search for alternative ways to secure revenues.
On Monday, the country's interim parliament agreed in principle on a
draft law that allows the state to issue Islamic bonds which the
government hopes it can raise some $10 billion dollars from bonds, which
according to Islamic Shariah don't pay interest.
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