Iraq’s peak electricity load hit a mammoth 48GW on 21 June, not only a record but an unprecedented 18GW annual increase over the same period in 2023. Iraq is facing yet another summer power crisis and the power grid is reeling under a surge in electricity demand for air conditioning as temperatures have soared above 50°C country-wide.
Just three days prior, electricity minister Ziad Fadhel said that power generation had “stabilized” at 25GW. These figures imply that the gap between supply and demand has hit a massive 23GW, almost double the 14GW gap for 2023 when summer demand peaked at 40GW with maximum supply of 26GW according to officials (MEES, 19 January). (CONTINUED - 996 WORDS)
