Dubai: Egyptian commuters and taxi drivers are facing fuel shortages in Cairo as the supply chain is crippled by transport problems and labour shortages sparked by the turmoil, analysts say.
Petrol pumps were either closed down or rationing fuel supplies, Egyptian residents said. "I went to three petrol pumps yesterday and didn't find any fuel. The fourth one said they were closing and told us we can fill a maximum of 20 litres," Mohammad Yehia, a resident of Nasr City, told Gulf News by telephone.
In Heliopolis, an upmarket neighbourhood where the presidential residence is located, some petrol pumps were closed and others limited commuters to a maximum of 15 litres each, said Mohammad Khairy, a Heliopolis resident.
Taxi drivers are complaining that fuel shortages mean that they work fewer hours and earn less income, according to Al Arabiya.
In the upscale Zamalek and Mohandisin neighbourhoods, residents say fuel began to disappear on Thursday. "There is a blockage in the oil supply chain because the trucks cannot go out and deliver. The drivers are worried about being kidnapped or having their trucks set on fire," said Khairy, an employee in a major oil and gas company.
Transport problems
Many workers in refineries and distribution are unable to go to work because of transport problems and the curfew that starts at 3pm, which means they must leave work early to get home in time, he added.
The Alexandria-Cairo highway and the Cairo-Suez routes are also closed so supplies from the refineries do not reach Cairo regularly, Khairy said.
"The big question is: Will this affect prices? Not at all," said Abdul Rahman Raouf, Minister Councillor at the Egyptian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, attributing the shortages to transport problems. Out of the 103 billion Egyptian pounds that the Egyptian government spends on subsidies, about 60 per cent is poured into fuel subsidies.
"Egypt has lived through many crises, but there was always a back-up plan. There isn't a shortage of fuel, there is a shortage of delivery and distribution. There are strategic stocks of everything always available in Egypt to last threee to nine months," Raouf said.
The political turmoil should not affect world oil prices because the Suez Canal is and will remain open and operational, he said.
