Tunisia's electricity crisis: "It is too late to save summer 2026

Elyes Ben Ammar, Deputy Secretary General of the General Federation of Electricity and Gas, affiliated with the UGTT, stated that it is "too late to save summer 2026." He attributes the crisis to a structural imbalance between production and consumption, exacerbated by the heatwave, noting that peak consumption now often occurs at night, exceeding daytime peaks. Ben Ammar explained that the Tunisian Electricity and Gas Company Steg implements load shedding to prevent a complete network collapse when demand surpasses available capacity.

These temporary, rotating power interruptions are a mechanism to maintain grid stability. Mohamed Atef Bouabdallah, another member of the Federation, previously explained on July 24 that these operations, whether manual or automatic, aim to avert a blackout. Ben Ammar praised Steg agents, technicians, and executives for their efforts under difficult conditions.

He highlighted that the shift in consumption patterns, with night-time peaks sometimes exceeding daytime peaks due to accumulated heat in buildings and air conditioner use, complicates emergency management. Steg resumed publishing lists of areas affected by rotating power cuts on August 20, initially for afternoon hours, but later extending to evening hours between 10 PM and midnight. Ben Ammar linked the continuation of power