KUWAIT: The ministry of electricity and water and renewable energy resorted to limited power cuts on Sunday as temperatures dropped slightly to around 48 degrees Celsius, a statement said. The ministry said on its X account that a two-hour cut was applied to seven non-residential industrial and farming areas despite a small fire breaking out at a small unit at Al-Zour South power plant, which did not affect power production.

Minister of Electricity and Water Mahmoud Bushehri visited the plant and ordered an investigation into the fire, which was put out quickly. Power was cut in blocks 1, 2, 3, and 4 in Jleeb Al-Shuyoukh on Sunday due to emergency maintenance works, the ministry said. On Friday and Saturday, the weekend holidays, there were limited cuts in a block in Salwa and another in Khaldiya, as two substations in each area went out of work briefly. Power was later restored to both areas.

Last week, the ministry resorted to major power cuts after consumption soared dramatically after temperatures of 51-52 degrees Celsius were recorded in several areas and remained almost above 50 degrees in most areas. The programmed cuts covered over 40 residential areas when consumption levels crossed the 16,200 MW danger line. On Sunday, consumption hit 16,047 MW. The cuts came even after Kuwait began receiving around 400 MW daily from the joint Gulf power grid.

Meanwhile, Kuwait Municipality on Sunday strongly warned house owners against renting their basements as storage areas after a campaign by authorities forced a large number of store owners to evict from buildings following the Mangaf fire that killed 49 people, mostly Indians. The municipality warned in a statement that renting basements in private homes to be used as warehouses is a legal violation.

The statement said authorities have lately noticed advertisements offering basements in private homes to be used as warehouses in violation of the law and which puts the lives of people at risk. The statement called on people to report such violations on the hotline 139 or on WhatsApp on 24727732.