Exclusive: Audit Bureau Official to Sada Economic: Electricity Demand Reaches 10,000 MW, with Some Areas Facing Up to 12 Hours of Darkness While Others Have Only Two Hours

Abdelbasit Al-Jabou, Director General of the Department of Oversight of the Energy Sector and Public Companies at the Audit Bureau, told our source exclusively that the primary cause of Libya’s electricity crisis is the increase in electricity needs and demand. In previous years, demand ranged between 6,000 and 7,000 megawatts, whereas in recent years it has risen to approximately 10,000 megawatts.

Al-Jabou added that, in this regard, the General Electricity Company of Libya (GECOL) procured electricity meters in 2023. The number of meters, their value, and the related payments were documented in several reports. This measure was part of the company’s plan and program to reduce electricity consumption, as the meters were intended to help monitor consumption levels and enable the introduction of an electricity tariff. Consumers paying according to their actual consumption were expected to be encouraged to reduce and rationalize their electricity use.

However, Al-Jabou continued, the General Electricity Company of Libya was unsuccessful in this regard. Consequently, electricity demand continued to rise, creating a significant gap. These problems became more apparent, particularly during August and September, as both months experienced a major heatwave that led to increased electricity consumption.

Al-Jabou further stated that the Audit Bureau has not audited the General Electricity Company of Libya for four years. On the one hand, this was due to the company’s objection to the audit process. On the other hand, at one point the company requested that its audit be conducted on a limited or conditional basis. The Audit Bureau, however, rejected a conditional audit and maintained that the review should be comprehensive and cover all of the company’s operations, including the funds allocated to it, contracts and financial appropriations, as well as the quantities of fuel it receives.

Al-Jabou confirmed that these fuels include diesel, which accounts for a significant portion of Libya’s national fuel consumption, with a large share allocated to the General Electricity Company of Libya. They also include heavy oil, or heavy fuel oil, as some power plants require this type of fuel for operation.

He explained that there is also a gap related to fuel supplies. Despite the National Oil Corporation increasing the number of fuel shipments, it has acknowledged the existence of a supply gap, both in diesel and gasoline. Diesel prices for tanker shipments have exceeded seven dinars. Despite the increase in shipments, queues and problems related to the distribution process have contributed to congestion and shortages of fuel and diesel.

Al-Jabou also pointed to the delayed operation of the South Tripoli Power Plant as another problem. The plant was part of a 2021 plan to increase electricity generation and has a production capacity of 1,320 megawatts. Its purpose was to increase electricity generation in order to meet rising demand. However, its operation was delayed, and the company was unable to bring it online as scheduled. Had the plant been operational before peak demand—even with only two of its turbines—it would have significantly helped alleviate the crisis.

Al-Jabou also emphasized that one of the causes of the electricity crisis, particularly in certain areas, is the lack of fairness in the distribution of load shedding. In some areas, load shedding has exceeded 12 hours, while in others it lasts only two or three hours. Some areas experience little to no power cuts. This situation has placed significant pressure on the control department of the General Electricity Company of Libya and forced it to increase load-shedding hours in some areas to more than ten hours per day.

Al-Jabou noted that, during discussions of the Crisis Committee, of which he serves as an observer member, the committee responsible for ensuring the provision of essential supplies—including diesel for bakeries, health clinics, and mills—discussed the reasons behind the unequal distribution of load shedding.

He said that justifications had been given regarding certain power stations located in areas containing security institutions. According to these justifications, these entities require that load shedding not be applied to their areas, or that it not be distributed equally, and request that electricity remain available or that power cuts be limited to only a few hours, sometimes as little as two hours.

Al-Jabou revealed that such cases exist and are known in parts of western Libya, where some areas are not subjected to load shedding while other areas bear the burden of lengthy power outages.

Al-Jabou concluded that Libya’s electricity crisis is linked to several interconnected factors, including rising electricity demand, the failure of the electricity consumption rationalization program, delays in operating some power-generation plants, problems with fuel supply and distribution, the absence of a comprehensive audit of the General Electricity Company of Libya over the past four years, and the lack of fairness in the distribution of load shedding among different areas.