Tunisia's Power Grid Strained by Heatwave, Company Responds to 18,000+ Outages
Translated from French, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.
At a glance
- Tunisia's electricity company, STEG, responded to an extreme heatwave by performing over 18,000 interventions in one week.
- Record electricity consumption, driven by air conditioning use, strained the national grid, leading to scheduled power outages.
- The company apologized for the disruptions and mobilized resources to manage the crisis, highlighting the impact of climate change on energy infrastructure.
Tunisia's national electricity provider, STEG, undertook an unprecedented mobilization effort, carrying out 18,294 interventions to restore power across the country between July 18 and 24, 2026. This massive response was a direct consequence of an extreme heatwave that pushed electricity consumption to record levels.
The intense heat led to widespread use of air conditioning, placing immense pressure on the national power grid. To prevent a total collapse and preserve the network's integrity, STEG was compelled to implement programmed electricity cutoffs. This measure, while necessary, caused significant frustration among citizens experiencing power outages during the peak of summer.
STEG's management issued an apology for the disruptions, requesting public understanding while emphasizing the company's commitment to managing the crisis. All available human and technical resources were deployed, with agents working 24 hours a day to address emergency repairs and maintain equipment affected by overheating. The company highlighted that this situation underscores the severe challenges posed by climate change to the nation's energy infrastructure and the critical need for robust crisis management.
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Originally published by La Presse in French. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.