Cairo – Mubasher: El Sewedy Electric has begun production at its Attaqa power plant in Suez Governorate ahead of schedule, the company said Sunday in a filing to the Egyptian Exchange (EGX).

The company said it finished the project in record time compared with peers worldwide, beginning electricity production at a capacity of 170 MW just 159 days after contracting.

Late in December, a company affiliated to El Sewedy Electric Group won a contract from Egypt's electricity ministry to design, supply, accomplish and equip two power generation plants using six gas turbines.

The two projects are part of a plan set by the Egyptian government to boost electricity output to make up for a shortage that the country has suffered in recent years.

Earlier in May, the electricity ministry declared a “state of emergency” within all companies producing, transporting and distributing electricity, as Egypt gears up for the summer heat, according to Reuters’ affiliated news site Aswat Masriya.

Egypt has been facing an energy crisis for years, with power outages surging in the summer, but hitting a peak last summer with more frequent power cuts.