KUWAIT CITY, Sept 18: Sources at the Ministry of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy have announced the commencement of the annual maintenance program for electricity generation units and water production distillers, as part of preparations for the upcoming summer season.

According to the sources, the removal of the first units for maintenance will begin next Sunday, following the agreed-upon schedule. The ministry aims to complete the removal of the largest possible number of units before April to ensure the country’s electricity needs are met efficiently during peak demand.

The ministry has devised a strategic plan to facilitate the smooth completion of maintenance work through an agreement with the Gulf Interconnection Network to purchase 900 megawatts during the maintenance period. This arrangement enables the ministry to take out a substantial number of units for comprehensive, radical, and preventive maintenance as scheduled.

Emphasizing the critical role of the production units, the sources highlighted that the ministry will heavily rely on their operational capacity to meet the challenges posed by the forthcoming summer. Maintenance efforts are focused on precise execution to prevent the recurrence of emergency shutdowns, particularly in older stations that were originally planned to be retired due to their age and frequent malfunctions.

The ministry also intends to apply the effective strategies from last summer that significantly helped tackle energy shortages. Moreover, it is finalizing additional solutions aimed at greatly easing energy issues in the coming season.

The sources expressed anticipation for the completion of key power projects, including Al-Zour North 2-3, Al-Subiya Phase 4, and Al-Shaqaya Phase 3 (first and second projects). These new stations will allow the ministry to retire the aging Shuaiba South and Doha East stations, which have suffered from wear and tear. The retirement of these stations hinges on the timely execution of the new projects to meet increasing electricity demand driven by ongoing development projects and planned residential city expansions.

In a related update, the Ministry of Electricity, Water, and Renewable Energy is currently discussing with the Public Authority for Housing Welfare to create a schedule for the electricity and water needs of future residential cities, including Nawaf Al-Ahmad, Al-Sabriya, and Al-Khairan. These plans aim to ensure infrastructure is ready for the growing population and housing developments.