An unnamed government official told reporters that Saudi Aramco had informed Egypt’s state oil buyer - Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC) - in early October that it would halt the supply of petroleum products to Egypt, without giving a timeline for the suspension or a reason. The Egyptian Ministry of Oil spokesperson Hamdy Abdel Aziz said that the halt does not mean that Aramco had called off the USD23bn five-year supply agreement. An Aramco official denied that the company had suspended shipments, adding that it had an obligation to fulfill its contract with EGPC. Meanwhile, Cabinet is reportedly exploring alternatives to meet demand, including increasing tenders, with an aim to allocate more than USD500mn. EGPC has issued a tender to import up to105k tonnes of 95-octane fuel for November delivery in Suez and another tender for 132k tonnes of gasoline for November delivery in Alexandria. (Reuters, Al Mantiq, Al Masry Al Youm, Enterprise)