Syria: Nationwide power outage reported November 6

Event

Power outages were reported across the country on Friday, November 6, due to an unspecified electricity network failure. The Minister of Electricity Ghassan Al Zamel has confirmed that the outage is the result of an infrastructure breakdown and that engineers were working to repair the fault. Local media sources reported that the electricity supply had been restored to some areas by late Friday morning, but it is currently unclear when the full network will be restored.

Residual business, travel, and service delivery disruptions due to the power outage are likely across Syria in the near term.

Context

Much of Syria's electricity infrastructure has been severely damaged or left in a poor state of repair during the country's nine-year civil war, resulting in frequent power network failures in many areas. The electricity supply in many parts of the country is limited to a few hours per day due to severe load-shedding, but electricity provision in Damascus is more stable and nationwide outages are rare. Nevertheless, several national blackouts have been reported in recent years following unspecified critical infrastructure failures.

Advice

Those in Syria are advised to monitor developments and anticipate residual disruptions in the near term due to the outage, even after power has been restored. Travelers in the country should ensure that business continuity and contingency plans account for the unstable power supply and should consider the availability of a back-up electricity supply where possible.

Due to extremely poor security conditions, Western governments generally advise against all travel to Syria, with some banning travel to the country. Professional security advice and support should be sought prior to any travel to Syria.