Power blackout hit eastern Libya after major technical fault in Benghazi transmission line

A sudden technical failure on a key electricity transmission circuit triggered a widespread disruption across Libya’s eastern power grid, temporarily cutting supply between the country’s eastern and western regions and knocking multiple generating units offline.

The General Electricity Company of Libya (GECOL) said the incident occurred on the 220 kV North Benghazi New – North Benghazi Old Circuit No. 1.

The fault caused the disconnection of lines linking the eastern and western networks, resulting in the shutdown of all generating units in the eastern region.

The disturbance activated the grid’s automatic defense mechanism in the western region, leading to the tripping of units 1 and 4 and the steam unit at the Misrata combined-cycle power plant.

A drop in overall grid frequency prompted further protective measures to safeguard system stability.

GECOL stated that technical teams responded immediately. Units 1 and 4 at the Misrata plant have already been restarted, while efforts are underway to restore the defense plan and gradually stabilise the network.

In the eastern region, units 3, 5, and 6 at the North Benghazi power station were brought back online, with work continuing to restore power to other stations in a phased manner. The company said operation and control teams are monitoring the grid in real time and coordinating between control centres and generation stations to ensure a safe and orderly recovery.

GECOL confirmed its teams are working around the clock to complete the restoration process and return the entire electrical system to normal operation.