EU, Egypt sign new energy deal

Published: 01 December, 2008

ENERGY

The European Commission has reached an agreement with the government of Egypt over cooperation in the energy sector. The deal, signed in December by Egypt’s minister of foreign affairs Ahmed Aboul Gheit and Benita Ferrero-Waldner and Andris Piebalgs, commissioners for external relations and neighbourhood policy and for energy, respectively, includes market reforms and a closer integration of the EU’s energy markets with Egypt’s, technological cooperation, network development and initiatives in renewable energy and energy efficiency.

Egypt is already the EU’s sixth largest supplier of natural gas and is seen as a key partner for Europe, which has been increasingly concerned with its energy security. The country has a key role not only in production of oil and gas, but in its transit through the Suez Canal. In keeping with the EU’s push for renewable energy, the deal also mentions Egypt’s potential for generating solar and wind power.

The EU released its Energy Security and Solidarity Action Plan in November 2008, emphasising the need to formulate a uniform energy security policy and to diversify its sources. Diplomatic tensions between the EU and its largest supplier, Russia, have led to concerns that one producer could exerts too much political leverage. Developing North African relationships is thought a priority, creating what the Action Plan calls a ‘Mediterranean energy ring,’ consisting of electricity and gas connections and investments in alternative energy.

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