Syria turns electricity on at unprecedented levels but residents complain of higher prices

The Syrian Ministry of Energy has supplied the capital Damascus with 48 continuous hours of electricity in an unprecedented experiment following 14 years of war and political upheaval.

Syrians however have recently been angered by rising electricity prices.

The experiment came after sustained efforts to repair major power stations and rehabilitate generation units, in addition to securing the necessary gas and fuel supplies to operate the grid continuously.

Since 2011, Syrians throughout the country have become accustomed to receiving electricity for only a few hours a day from the state.

Mohammed Fadila, the Director General of the Public Electricity Generation Corporation, said that Syria’s electricity production has risen to about 2400 megawatts, with a noticeably improved electricity supply across various provinces.

However, Fadila said that this would not mean an end to rationing and power cuts, adding that the test was aimed at studying the grid’s ability to withstand increased loads.

Fadila told The New Arab’s sister site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that achieving 24-hour continuous supply depends on completing the rehabilitation of all generation units and ensuring a steady supply of gas and fuel in the required quantities.

He noted that several stations and units have recently been repaired, most notably the Zara plant, Baniyas, Aleppo, and Al-Nasiriya.

However, despite the increased electricity, residents of Damascus expressed skepticism, linking improved supply with higher bills. Syria’s economy collapsed during the war and today most Syrians live in poverty.

The Syrian news website Enab Baladi recently published an investigation which said that 83% of Syrians could not afford the new electricity bills, with Syrians describing them as a “nightmare” and saying they had to find new ways to ration electricity.

One Damascus resident said: “Even though the electricity is staying on longer, I feel our bill will go up even more.”

Another resident made a symbolic protest by switching off the main circuit breaker in his home so he wouldn’t be hit by high bills. He said that improvements in service shouldn’t come at the cost of increased prices.

Syria has recently attracted international investment aimed at rehabilitating energy infrastructure and boosting production capacity.

In May 2025, Syrian Energy Minister Mohammed Al-Bashir signed a memorandum of understanding with a coalition of international companies from Qatar, the United States, and Turkey to build four combined-cycle power plants with a total capacity of 4000 megawatts, in addition to a 1000-megawatt solar power plant, under a huge $7 billion agreement.

Participants include UCC (Qatar) along with American and Turkish companies – a landmark step in rebuilding Syria’s electricity sector.

Qatar is also supplying Syria with natural gas to support electricity generation. Qatar is expected to pump about 2 million cubic meters of gas per day to the Deir Ali plant via a pipeline passing through Jordan, aiming to increase generation capacity by 400 megawatts, with technical support and financing from the Qatar Development Fund.