Egyptian governors will introduce deterrents, including fines and tougher prison sentences, to stop warehouses manipulating the distribution of butane gas.
Those found guilty could face fines from LE15,000 to LE20,000, prison sentences of no less than six months and the closure of warehouses found responsible.
In a Board of Governors meeting on Thursday, chaired by Prime Minister Hazem al-Beblawy, officials decided to tighten controls on vehicles transporting cylinders so as to prevent smuggling to the black market or distributing home cylinders to farms.
It has also increased the hotline service for reporting violations from 62 to 112 lines.
The board instructed all governors to provide large-size cylinders to farms and make sure kilns are used to produce diesel fuel and not natural gas.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
