The Ministry of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy reported that the national grid held steady this summer as temperatures reached 48 to 49 degrees Celsius and power demand exceeded 15,000 megawatts on several days. Ministry sources credited the stability to full completion of scheduled maintenance on generation units before the season along with early precautionary steps that kept nearly all production capacity online. Officials added that these preparations provided operational flexibility even when loads climbed rapidly during the hottest periods.
According to the ministry the national conservation campaign known as Save helped ease pressure by encouraging reduced usage during peak afternoon hours while many industrial facilities scaled back operations from noon to 5 p.m. The shorter official working day also lowered overall consumption at critical times. Data from the ministry showed that generation consistently matched demand without the need for programmed cuts despite the added strain of record heat.
The ministry confirmed that strikes attributed to Iran beginning in mid-July caused fires and limited damage at several coastal power and desalination plants including facilities at Al-Zour. Undersecretary Dr. Adel Al-Zamel said technical teams responded immediately by isolating affected equipment and adapting maintenance schedules so that overall readiness for peak summer loads remained on track. Al-Zamel noted that transmission capacity had been expanded in coordination with the Gulf Cooperation Council Interconnection Authority which supplied up to 1,150 megawatts at times of highest demand.
Ministry spokeswoman Fatima Hayat highlighted strong public compliance with repeated calls to conserve electricity which kept consumption below projections even after the attacks. Residents curtailed air conditioning use during peak periods in response to alerts sent through government applications. The ministry contrasted this summer’s performance with 2024 when extreme heat alone forced temporary outages in multiple areas before similar conservation efforts were fully implemented.
An assessment by the Arabian Gulf Security Institute described the Iranian campaign as timed to coincide with peak summer demand when air conditioning accounts for the majority of residential load and water consumption also rises sharply. The ministry urged continued rationalization of both electricity and water use to support ongoing repairs and maintain reserves. Technical emergency teams stayed on alert to restore service quickly in any affected districts.
The ministry stated that four main factors underpinned the successful navigation of the 2026 summer season including heightened public awareness campaigns completed maintenance on all major units activation of the Gulf interconnection link and readiness of rapid response crews. Officials said the experience gained from last year’s conservation results and improved load management in industry and agriculture further strengthened grid resilience. The ministry indicated it would continue periodic reviews of imported power volumes from the GCC network to support upcoming maintenance cycles.
