Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan all reported blackouts on Friday, which Kazakhstan’s Energy Ministry said had been caused by a "sudden change in the power flow" from the Central Asian grid.
The countries share an interconnected power grid, so a failure of the grid in one nation can quickly spread to neighbouring countries.
The energy ministries of all four countries confirmed outages. Work was under way to restore power, they added.
Alatau Zharyk Company, which supplies electricity to Kazakhstan's largest city Almaty and the surrounding region, said disruption began at 14:38 local time (09:38 GMT).
Data showed that high-voltage lines ran by KEGOC, Kazakhstan's national operator, experienced an emergency shutdown, after which protection systems were triggered.
Almaty's 2.35 million residents reported power cuts, as well as residents of Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek. Local media in Tajikistan reported outages in the capital, Dushanbe, and second city Khujand.
KEGOC later issued a statement on Friday blaming a power surge from the Central Asian regional grid for the problem and said that three major transmission lines automatically tripped offline for safety reasons.
Work to restore power supply to consumers was "continuing," KEGOC added. Tajikistan's Ministry of Energy also later said that power had been restored to all regions of the country.
Electricity shortages are common in Central Asia, where traditional reliance on hydropower has posed problems as climate change leaves hydroelectric stations vulnerable to water shortages.
The day after waiving sanctions and tariffs related to Russian exports, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturd...
What started out as planned protests against the cost of living, declining public services and education funding in France, quickly devol...
A Saudi AH-6i helicopter crashed in the Najran region of Saudi Arabi...
The U.S. has banned government employees working in Saudi Arabia from using airports in the country without special authorisation. It comes after a deadly Houthi strike on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport killed at least 13 people last week.
U.S. President Donald Trump has called it “a disgrace” that Ukraine has resumed attacks on Russian oil refineries. Attacks are continuing from Russia and Ukraine as media reports say Ukraine has almost run out of Patriot interceptor missiles.
An unknown projectile struck a tanker 68 nautical miles northeast of Saudi Arabia on Friday according to a report released by the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) on Saturday.
Nationwide protests are set to begin in France on Saturday with students, trade unionists and remnants of the Yellow Vest movement expected to demonstrate against rising living costs amongst others.
A group of U.S. lawmakers is seeking to halt the Trump administration's agreement to purchase and import Russian diesel fuel, arguing that the arrangement would benefit Moscow financially while offering little relief to American consumers.
A Saudi AH-6i helicopter crashed in the Najran region of Saudi Arabia due to a technical malfunction, killing its two crew members, the Saudi-led coalition's spokesman Brigadier General Turki al-Maliki said in a statement on Sunday.
Uzbekistan welcomed 10.3 million foreign tourists in the first nine months of 2026, up 20.4 per cent year-on-year, as the Central Asian nation pushes towards its ambitious goal of attracting 20 million visitors annually by 2030.
In an interview with AnewZ’s Sabir Safarov, Houthi-aligned journalist Hussain al-Bukhaiti warns of possible attacks on Saudi Arabia’s water and power infrastructure, dismisses concerns over global trade and acknowledges Iranian assistance in developing the group’s missiles.
Armenia is looking to turn shared environmental challenges into opportunities for regional cooperation, with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan highlighting the potential for stronger ties with neighbouring countries through biodiversity protection.
Student organisations, opposition groups and youth-led activists took to the streets in Patna and Mumbai on Friday (16 October), demanding the resignation of India's Chief Election Commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, amid a row over changes to voter lists.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment