STEG authorizes hybrid solar-battery installations amid record electricity demand and rolling blackouts
Tunisia’s state-owned utility, STEG, has authorized households and businesses connected to the low-voltage grid to install battery energy storage systems paired with hybrid inverters, as an unprecedented heatwave drives record electricity demand and pushes the country’s power infrastructure to its breaking point.
The emergency measure comes as air conditioning usage soars across the nation, sending electricity consumption to historic highs and triggering recurring power outages. The grid strain has become so severe that STEG has been forced to issue urgent appeals for consumers to curb their energy usage.
Under the new authorization, property owners with existing photovoltaic installations can now use stored battery power to maintain electricity supply during temporary grid interruptions caused by load-shedding protocols—a critical lifeline for households and businesses facing frequent blackouts.
Technical Guidelines Released to Ensure Safety
To safeguard both customer installations and the broader electricity network, STEG has published a comprehensive technical guide on its website. The document establishes mandatory requirements and minimum specifications for the design, installation, operation, and maintenance of solar systems equipped with batteries and hybrid inverters.
The guidelines are designed for three key audiences: residential consumers, STEG’s technical personnel, and certified installers responsible for deploying these systems across the country.
Industry Hails Decision as ‘Important Step’
Tunisia’s renewable energy sector has welcomed the policy shift. Speaking on national radio, Sadok Besbes, president of the Renewable Energy Professional Group at the Confederation of Citizen Enterprises of Tunisia (CONECT), praised the decision as a significant milestone in expanding distributed energy storage adoption across the country.
However, Besbes emphasized that regulatory change alone would not be sufficient to drive widespread adoption. He called on the government to introduce financial incentives for households investing in these technologies, specifically proposing the reduction of customs duties on solar modules and batteries used in photovoltaic installations—a move he argues would accelerate the transition toward energy independence and grid resilience.
TunisianMonitorNews
