Gov't denies rise in power tariff after new firm reads meters

CAIRO - 14 December 2017: On Thursday, the Egyptian cabinet denied that there were any increases in electricity tariffs after a new company took the responsibility of reading electric meters.

"Power distribution companies are abiding by the latest prices announced in July," the cabinet's Information and Decision Support Center said in a statement.

The Ministry of Electricity signed a contract in November with Shuaa-Arabian Scientific Information Company to provide meter reading services for customers. The trial operations started with the North and South Cairo electricity distribution companies.
The ministry is planning to convert all 30 million consumer electricity meters to smart meters in the next 10 years with a budget of LE 60 billion.

Divided into phases, the ministry is aiming to install four million smart meters a year until 2027. They will start installing the smart meters in households, during the experimental phase, in one year, spokesperson of the Ministry of Electriciry Ayman Hamza previously announced.