Egypt has chosen to respond to the energy pressure with a visible, immediate and very concrete measure: starting this Saturday, the majority of shops, restaurants, cafés and shopping centers will have to close earlier.
Behind this decision lies a brutal reality: the country’s energy bill has surged under the impact of the war, to the point of pushing the state to tighten its energy-saving measures.
The Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced that this measure would be applied, in a first phase, for one month. On most days of the week, the closing time will be set at 9 p.m., while on Thursdays and Fridays (the weekend), it will be extended to 10 p.m..
An energy bill that has nearly tripled
The government’s argument is unequivocal. Before the war, Egypt’s monthly energy bill stood at about $560 million. It now reaches $1.65 billion.
This surge measures the shock endured by the country. In a matter of weeks, energy has become a much heavier budgetary burden, in a context already strained for public finances and for purchasing power.
The pressure does not come only from rising international prices. It is also linked to disruptions on regional energy routes, notably the significant decline in the passage of oil and gas shipments via the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic axis whose tensions weigh directly on markets.
Shops, restaurants and shopping centers affected
The new decision targets a wide range of activities. The shops, the restaurants, the cafés and the shopping centers will all have to adhere to these reduced hours.
This is clearly a measure aimed at rationalizing consumption, designed to limit energy demand during certain time slots, without going so far as to paralyze economic activity. The government is thus seeking to reduce pressure on the system while maintaining a minimum level of normal functioning in the cities.
A response to a crisis that has lasted for several years
This measure does not arise from a vacuum. For several years, Egypt has faced recurring tensions in its energy sector. The decline in local production, combined with a drop in natural gas imports, has weakened the country’s electricity balance.
To cope, authorities have already multiplied energy-saving decisions, including in the past by reducing hours of electricity supply for certain households and businesses. The new tightening thus continues a pattern, but with a higher level of urgency due to the current energy shock.
Fuel prices had already risen sharply
The earlier closing of shops follows another significant measure: at the start of the month, Egypt had already raised fuel prices by more than 30%.
This increase was decided in a climate of strong turbulence in regional energy markets, after Iranian strikes targeting oil infrastructures in the Middle East. For the authorities, it was already about absorbing part of the extra cost imposed by the crisis.
In other words, the earlier closure of shops is not an isolated decision. It adds to a set of adjustment measures aimed at containing an energy shock that has become much more costly.
Tourism remains protected
The Egyptian government has however taken care to preserve a vital sector for the national economy: tourism.
In a statement, the Minister of Tourism, Sherif Fathi, specified that the new time restrictions will not affect tourist destinations nor the tourist restaurants. The stated objective is clear: to prevent these austerity measures from affecting visitors’ experiences or the quality of services offered in Egypt.
This exception shows that Cairo is trying to find a delicate balance between energy savings and preserving its foreign exchange earnings, at a time when tourism remains a strategic lever.
A trade-off between economic urgency and daily life
In essence, this decision says a lot about the current period. When a state chooses to shorten the operating hours of its shops and restaurants, it is not merely a matter of administrative organization. It is a sign that the energy crisis has become heavy enough to alter the very rhythm of daily life.
Egypt is thus trying to contain an invoice that has become unsustainable, without completely breaking economic activity or weakening its most sensitive sectors. But this kind of measure also reminds us how far the repercussions of a regional war can spread, well beyond the military sphere, reaching the shopping streets, cafés and consumer habits.
Thus, by imposing the closure of shops, restaurants and shopping centers at 9 p.m. on most days of the week, and at 10 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays, Egypt sends a clear message: the energy crisis is no longer an abstract threat; it now directly weighs on the organization of daily life.
With a monthly bill rising from $560 million to $1.65 billion, the country enters a phase of tight resource management.
It remains to be seen whether this provisional one-month arrangement will be enough to absorb the shock, or whether it marks only the beginning of a longer period of adjustments imposed by the regional energy surge.
