Power grid collapses across southern, western and central Libya

Source: Xinhua| 2026-08-17 16:55:00|Editor: huaxia

TRIPOLI, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- A total power outage hit western, central and southern Libya early Monday after several power generation plants went offline, according to local media.

The Zawiya and Khoms power plants in western Libya and the Ubari gas-fired power plant in the south went offline, with the reasons for the simultaneous shutdowns remaining unclear, local media and sources said.

The General Electricity Company of Libya said after the nationwide blackout that technical teams were assessing the situation and working to gradually restore electricity.

Meanwhile, the Man-Made River Authority announced that a number of wells and pumping systems had stopped operating due to repeated power outages and the nationwide collapse of the electricity grid, warning that the disruption would affect the amount of water pumped to major cities.

This blackout marked the second complete power outage in the past 24 hours in western and central Libya.

Public anger and frustration have been mounting across Libya over the deterioration of public services and growing hardships. Local media reports said the crises have continued to pile up.

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