The debate over Cyprus’s electricity adequacy has run for years, with political parties submitting proposals, the government setting timetables, and the EAC and Transmission System Operator Cyprus (TSOC) working to manage the network’s adequacy and security. This year, adequacy again appears set to be judged on a marginal basis, particularly if any faults occur.
Cyprus faces a risk of blackout, though this risk does not apply to all hours of the day. This is due to the energy available from both conventional generation units and renewable energy production.
The numbers behind Cyprus’s capacity
Cyprus’s total installed electricity generation capacity from conventional units, meaning heavy fuel oil power stations, reaches 1,478MW. A further 1,040MW comes from renewable energy production. Cyprus’s total capacity therefore exceeds 2,480MW under ideal conditions. This figure should not be confused with available capacity, however, since not all conventional units can operate 24 hours a day or simultaneously, due to maintenance and other factors.
For example, on the day in question, available capacity from power stations stood at 1,130MW, while with the addition of renewable production during generation hours, the energy that can be fed into the network exceeds 2,000MW.
How the risk is assessed
According to TSOC spokesperson Chara Kousiappa, total demand at midday last Monday reached 1,156MW, while in the evening it touched 921MW. The TSOC estimates that demand during this summer season will range between 1,260 and 1,300MW. The record demand was recorded on July 22, 2024, at 1,294MW.
Based on these figures, Kousiappa explained there is sufficient capacity to cover demand, provided no fault occurs in production. This raises the question of which hours carry the greatest risk.
The hours that concern officials most
During the autumn months, officials proceed with cutbacks to commercial and residential solar systems due to surplus production, since demand remains low. During the summer months, however, the opposite occurs during the afternoon and evening hours.
Specifically, the hours when Cyprus faces the greatest risk of a possible blackout are between 6pm and 10pm, when demand rises but production falls, due to reduced renewable output after dark.
For example, at 8pm last Monday, demand reached 921MW, with 896MW coming from conventional production, while wind power output reached only 40 to 50MW, meaning it cannot make up for solar production, which drops to almost zero during the evening hours.
From solar cutbacks to power cuts
As noted above, Cyprus experiences two opposite phenomena. During the autumn months, and not only then, officials proceed with cutbacks to solar production due to increased output and reduced demand.
During the summer months, particularly during the afternoon hours until 10pm, the practice followed, if needed, is exactly the opposite: cutting power to preserve network security and avoid a blackout.
The state had also drawn up a plan last year for emergency load shedding, dividing consumers into groups, similar to the approach taken with solar system groups. Under this plan, if the network faced risk, these groups would face 30-minute power cuts.
Nicosia was divided into 22 groups, as was Limassol, along with Larnaca-Famagusta, while Paphos was divided into 18. On Tuesday, August 12, 2025, at 6:41pm, the National Energy Control Centre carried out rotating load shedding across five consumer groups, with a maximum duration of 18 minutes.