The Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) has up till now been unable to sign a tender for the purchase of two liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments expected in April.

A week ago EGAS launched a tender which was only open to a number of its current suppliers, for the supply of one cargo from April 1 to 7, and another in April 27 to 28, 2016.

According to traders, for the April 27 to 28 cargo, EGAS chose Trafigura as the supplier, but the agreement had encountered some problems after EGAS made effort to change the delivery to the middle of April.

As at yesterday, the positions were still unoccupied as EGAS is believed to still be discussing with possible suppliers.

Egypt became a hub for LNG shippers following the inauguration of two floating import terminals in 2015, as it plans to eradicate the lack of energy that has stopped industrial production and caused regular blackouts.

As a matter of fact, a severe drop in foreign currency proceeds has slowed down the country’s ability to meet the expense of commodities, which includes LNG, thereby causing more restraint among suppliers in their transactions with EGAS, Reuters reports.

Anita Fatunji