Kuwait plans new power projects to avert supply gap

Alamy via Reuters

• Summer demand peak
• Expand existing plants
• Plans for new facilities

Kuwait is planning a series of new power projects to avert an electricity supply crisis during the hot summer months when demand peaks, the Opec member’s minister of electricity, water and renewable energy has said.

Minister Mahmoud Abdulaziz Mahmoud Bushehri, quoted by the Kuwaiti daily Alseyassah on Tuesday, said power consumption next summer will surpass the Gulf emirate’s generation capacity but a shortfall of around 1,000 megawatts will be offset through the Gulf power network, which groups Kuwait with five other regional states.

Bushehri said supplies from the Gulf grid will allow Kuwait to avert electricity shortages next summer, when demand exceeds 19,000 MW.

“To tackle the supply problem, we have devised plans to expand existing power plants and construct a number of new facilities. The operational life of some stations has expired and they need to be taken out of service. This means we need to build new stations to replace those units,” the minister said.

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Kuwait is consistently among the hottest countries in the world, particularly during the summer months when temperatures can rise to as high as 54C, and air conditioning units are in high demand.

Despite strong oil production and large reserves, the country’s power outages have been exacerbated by limited investment because of political deadlock, according to energy experts.

Bushehri said Kuwait’s total electricity production will reach around 20,000 MW in three years when a range of projects are completed.

These new projects include renewable energy schemes that will allow Kuwait to attain a target of expanding the share of renewable sources to 30 percent of the energy mix within the next four years.