Egypt is seeking more fuel oil to meet its power generation demand via its latest tender for August supply, five trading sources told Reuters.
The country has ramped up fuel oil purchases this year as it seeks alternatives to alleviate a gas shortage after the pipeline supply of natural gas from Israel to Egypt dropped.
The Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) is seeking about 900,000 tonnes of fuel oil for August delivery in its most recent tender, according to the trading sources.
The tender will close on July 2 and remain valid until July 10, one of the sources said.
The Egyptian Petroleum Ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Egypt consumes around 40,000 tonnes of fuel oil per day for electricity generation, an Egyptian market source said.
Apart from fuel oil, Egypt has boosted its LNG imports this year to meet its power generation demand. The country has endured blackouts amid a shaky gas supply in the past two years.
Israel has resumed limited natural gas exports from surplus supplies, the country's energy ministry said, nearly a week after shutting down two key offshore fields as Israel and Iran waged an air battle.
(Reporting by Jeslyn Lerh in Singapore, Enes Tunagur in London and Mohamed Ezz in Cairo; Editing by Vijay Kishore)