Egypt defends power policies

Cairo said imposed rolling blackouts during the warmest part of the year are necessary to prevent the electrical grid from collapsing. An energy council led by Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif said the blackouts would continue during the heat wave but would last only a few hours at a stretch, Egyptian newspaper al-Masry al-Youm reports.

Magdy Rady, a government spokesman, said new power stations were expected to come online within a few weeks and more solar power facilities were on the horizon.

Meanwhile, three Egyptian nationals filed a lawsuit calling on President Hosni Mubarak to dismiss Electricity Minister Hassan Younis for failing to address the problem.

The complaint to Mubarak said the power cuts are leading to a loss in productivity and threatening lives of patients at national hospitals, the report adds.

The Electricity Ministry said a budget shortfall is to blame for many of the electricity woes.