Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) – Due to the unusually high temperatures, several consumers in Tashkent have been temporarily disconnected from the power supply, according to the Ministry of Energy of Uzbekistan.

The ministry reported a record level of electricity consumption in the country. Over the past week, electricity demand increased by 16.5 million kWh, or 7.1%, due to the extreme heat. On 25 and 26 July, historical records for energy consumption in Uzbekistan were set.

On 25 July at 15:47, with the air temperature reaching 39.7°C in Tashkent, the total power consumption in the country’s energy system hit 11,822 MW. The dispatcher service received 1,055 complaints about power outages.

“This figure is an absolute record for the summer period and exceeds the maximum consumption recorded on 28 July 2023, by 343 MW (+40°C). Additionally, on 26 July, the maximum daily electricity consumption for the summer period reached 253.3 million kWh, 0.9 million kWh more than the previous record set on July 28, 2023,” the statement said.

On Saturday, 27 July at 14:27, Tashkent saw an all-time high power consumption of 1,705 MW, 97 MW more than the peak recorded on July 27 of the previous year (+40.1°C).

The Ministry of Energy stated that due to the extreme heat and reduced capacity of overhead power lines and cables on some energy facilities in the capital, exceptionally high loads were recorded from 11:00 to 17:00.

“This situation required the imposition of short-term temporary restrictions for Tashkent consumers to prevent potential system failures and uncontrolled large-scale outages,” the statement added.

The Ministry called on consumers to understand these measures as necessary to avoid major disruptions in the power grid that could require extended repairs.

Consumers were also urged to practice strict conservation and minimize the use of electrical appliances to reduce the load on the system and the number of outages.

Currently, the country’s energy system has 1,300 MW of reserve capacity during the day. About 1,900 MW (16%) of the energy system’s needs are met by solar photovoltaic installations, which saves 590,000 cubic meters of gas per hour, according to the Ministry of Energy.

Emergency teams are working to resolve issues with some networks, and additional staff have been deployed to respond quickly to citizen inquiries via the number 1154.