Minister of Oil and Minister of
Electricity and Water Essam Al-Marzouq

KUWAIT: Kuwait has one of the lowest power outages' rates in the world, but cannot completely eliminate the problem due to high consumption in parallel with the rising temperatures, a senior government official said yesterday.

The Ministry of Electricity and Water (MEW) carries out periodic maintenance operations and expansion works at power plants to increase their production capacity, Minister Essam Al-Marzouq said. These works help limit blackouts to the minimum, but cannot prevent cuts which might happen when consumption rates increase during hot summer months.

Marzouq, who doubles as Minister of Oil, made those remarks during a reception held at the MEW head office building to receive Eid Al-Fitr well-wishers. Asked about a project to connect water networks between Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, the minister said that coordination continues on that regard between GCC energy ministries, but a set date is yet to be determined.

Staff attendance

More than 65 percent of employees at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor (MSAL) reported to work yesterday, which is a positive indicator in terms of job commitment and making sure that the process of work goes on unaffected, minister Hind Al-Sabeeh said.

Speaking during a reception to receive Eid Al-Fitr well-wishers, Sabeeh expressed gratitude to top ministry officials who made sure to report to work in order to help patrons finalize their transactions before the weekend in order to be able to travel.

Meanwhile, Sabeeh confirmed reports about a near merger between the Manpower Public Authority and the Management and Government Restructuring Program, saying that it will help provide more effective mechanisms to collect fines from private companies that fail to abide by the minimum quota for hiring national manpower.

By Meshaal Al-Enezi and A Saleh