Egypt has halted exports from the country’s only operational LNG plant. The 7.2mn t/y ELNG plant at Idku near Alexandria, having last shipped a cargo in mid-March, will be shut until the third week of July when the next scheduled cargo is due for export, MEES understands.

Although Shell and Malaysian state firm Petronas are the key shareholders at Idku, and France’s Total also has a small stake (see chart 1), the latest shutdown has been at the instigation of state firms EGPC and Egas – who have cited the spread of Covid-19 in Egypt as a key reason for the move. (CONTINUED - 1227 WORDS)