Keynote Speech of Ditte Juul-Joergensen at EGYPES Strategic Conference

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Keynote Speech of Ditte Juul-Joergensen at EGYPES Strategic Conference

01.04.2026 Press and information team of the Delegation to EGYPT

© EU 2026

His Excellency, President Al Sisi,

Prime Minister Madbouly,

President Christodoulidis,

Excellencies, Ministers, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, Sabah al Khair,

It is a great pleasure and a great honour to be back in Cairo for the Egypt Energy Show together with the Cypriot Presidency of the European Union, President Christodoulidis.

I had the honour to be here for the Egypt Energy Show in the presence of his Excellency President Al Sisi in February 2024 and accompanying President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in June 2024 for the EU-Egypt Investment Conference here in Cairo. And, in October 2025, we had in Brussels the first-ever EU-Egypt Summit.

Each of those occasions marked important milestones in our long and productive relationship and that laid the foundations of a continued strong partnership into our shared future. And, of course, energy is a crucial dimension of the Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership between the European Union and Egypt.

The theme of this year's Egypt Energy Show, "Transforming energy through collaboration, action and realism" is more than just a phrase - it is a strategic necessity to which we in Europe are committed, in partnership with Egypt, across the Mediterannean.

When we met in 2024 and again in 2025 nobody could have imagined the scale of the instability, uncertainty and human suffering that the Middle East is experiencing today. The situation is extremely serious. It is causing suffering across the region and deep concern far beyond it. The European Union stands in solidarity and friendship with our partners and friends in the region. And we are acting on that solidarity. On 16 March, the European Commission announced more than €450 million in humanitarian aid in the region for 2026.

We call for a de-escalation of hostilities, for the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure, and a moratorium on strikes against energy and water facilities.

We commend Egypt's important diplomatic work to de-escalate the situation in the Middle East.

This crisis, and in particular the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, carries a growing risk for the global economy and energy markets.

While we do not face an immediate security of supply crisis in the EU, we recognise the severe impact globally.

As a net importer of gas, Europe is exposed to global markets and price spikes. Volatility in oil and gas markets affects our competitiveness, industry and households. And we are acutely aware that many of our partners and friends have been impacted more severely, including here in Egypt, across the African continent and in Asia.

We remain ready to support. We joined the voluntary release of oil stocks coordinated by the International Energy Agency, in solidarity with the countries that have been the hardest hit by the crisis.

This crisis confirms once again the necessity of the clean energy transition. Clean, home-grown energy is not only about climate change.

It is about security of supply. It is about resilience.

It is about giving businesses and citizens access to more stable and more affordable energy over time.

The more we invest in domestic clean power capacity, the less we are exposed to geopolitical shocks and volatile fossil fuel markets.

That is why the European Union remains firmly committed to the energy transition and the decarbonisation of our economy towards climate neutrality by 2050.

An effective energy strategy must be realistic and reflect the context. We still rely on gas and oil imports and will continue to do so over the next decades. We have diversified our supply, drawing on the lessons from 2022, and our East Med partnership plays a key role in that context.

At the same time, we are working to strengthen the manufacturing capacity in clean technologies, to attract investments, and to build resilience in strategic value chains.

This is not something Europe can do alone. We must forge the links of these supply chains with trusted partners, like Egypt and the Mediterannean region.

Electrification is an essential part of the transition. For this reason, we are working towards the launch of a Global Electrification Campaign. This will be a platform to sustain political momentum and build coalitions. It will help us showcase electrification initiatives and mobilise investments. We hope Egypt will join us in this campaign.

And, indeed, when it comes to clean energy, Europe and Egypt are already close partners with the ambition to transform our energy systems - in Egypt with the goal of 42% renewable energy by 2030, and 65% by 2040.

Only last month, the European Commission allocated €90 million to support Egypt's Grid Modernisation and Expansion programme.

This financing will help Egypt to add an extra 22 GW of clean energy to its grids.

We have also delivered over €34 million to support the Sokhna Green Ammonia project.

This will help accelerate the deployment of green hydrogen and associated renewable energy initiatives.

By supporting these projects, we can help enable Egypt to unlock its full potential as a regional energy hub, with benefits that will span across the Mediterannean Sea.

His Excellency, President Al Sisi,

Prime Minister,

At the first ever EU Egypt Summit in Brussels last year, his Excellency President Al Sisi described how we stood on the threshold of a new phase in our economic cooperation.

And that, if we wanted to step beyond this threshold, we would need broad vision, and great ambition.

We can see this vision and this ambition here today.

For Europe, Egypt is a neighbour, a friend, but Egypt is also a strategic partner. And at this moment, our partnership is more important than ever.

Let us use this moment: not only to respond to our current crisis, but to build a better future.

A future of stability and security. A future of opportunity and prosperity.

And most of all, a future that is shared by all of our people: from Alexandria, via Nicosia to Athens, from Cairo to Copenhagen.

On that note, I thank you for your time, and I look forward to our continued cooperation.