Central Asian blackout caused by Kyrgyzstan hydropower generators shutdown – UPDATED-2

The shutdown of two hydropower generators at Kyrgyzstan's Toktogul Hydropower Plant caused a blackout in Kazakhstan and neighboring countries.

Report informs, citing Kazakh media, that the system operator of Kazakhstan's Unified Electric Power System, KEGOC, made the announcement.

According to the company, two hydropower generators with a combined capacity of 600 MW were shut down at the Toktogul HPP at 14:37 on August 14. This resulted in an overload of the North–East–South transmission line and the separation of the Southern Zone from Kazakhstan's Unified Electric Power System and the Central Asian Unified Power System, which includes Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

As a result, some consumers in Kazakhstan's Almaty, Zhambyl, Turkistan, Kyzylorda and Zhetisu regions were left without electricity. Power outages also affected the Karaganda, Ulytau and Abai regions.

According to the statement, KEGOC fully restored power supply to consumers in the Karaganda, Ulytau and Abai regions at 14:47 local time, in the Almaty and Zhetisu regions at 16:26, and in the Zhambyl, Turkistan and Kyzylorda regions at 16:34.

"The causes of the technological incident will be investigated by a special commission," the company said.

16:02

A sharp change in electricity flows from the Central Asian power system triggered emergency protection systems, resulting in power outages in some regions of Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan's Ministry of Energy said in a statement, according to Report.

"On August 14, 2026, a sharp increase in power in the energy system occurred due to a sudden change in electricity flows from the Central Asian power system. As a result, emergency protection systems were triggered, leading to power outages for consumers in some regions," the statement said.

The ministry noted that KEGOC, the system operator, is currently carrying out the necessary restoration work. Power has already been restored in a number of regions.

Meanwhile, Kazakh media reported that the power outage caused traffic jams in Almaty, where traffic lights stopped working.

15:18

An accident in the power system of one of the Central Asian countries affected the electricity systems across the region, Uzbekistan"s Ministry of Energy said in a statement, according to Report.

The incident resulted in power outages in the Surkhandarya Region and several other regions of Uzbekistan.

"Currently, power supply is gradually being restored by energy system workers. Additional information will be provided later," the ministry said.

Power outages were also reported on August 14 in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. In Bishkek, residents of several districts reported outages starting at 15:00 local time.

Outages were also recorded in Almaty and the Almaty Region of Kazakhstan. According to Alatau Zharyk Company, power lines L-5400, L-5300 and L-5320 were emergency shut down, triggering the emergency protection system. The amount of disconnected load reached 300 MW.

In Tajikistan, outages occurred in Dushanbe, Kulob, Khujand, Vahdat, Nurek, Hisor, Shahrinav, Rogun and other settlements.