Lights go out in Manbij as Turkey dries out Euphrates River
MANBIJ, Syria (North Press) – An official at the Manbij Power Company said on Tuesday that it had increased rationing hours owing to the receding levels of the Euphrates River. Tishreen Dam, on the Euphrates, is the main source of electricity for Manbij.
On January 12, Hammoud al-Hamadin, an administrator at Tishreen Dam, said the dam remained out of commission for 19 hours in a row owing to the reduced levels of the water that “have largely damaged the dam”. He warned that the situation could not go on as it was, indicating that the low levels were unprecedented for winter.
He added that Turkey had reduced water levels to less than 125 cubic meter per second since April 2022 which is an “appalling level” and less than Syria’s share of the water flow according to relevant agreements signed between Syria and Turkey.
According to the agreement signed between Syria and Turkey in 1987, Syria was allocated 500 cubic meters per second, but now that share has fallen below 200 cubic meters.
Co-chair of the Manbij Power Company, Muhammad Shibli, told North Press electricity hours in Manbij have been reduced to less than six hours due to low levels of the Euphrates water.
Should the water levels fall any lower it will make the dam inoperable, he added.
According to Shibli, Manbij currently receives 45 megawatts of electricity per hour, though the city needs more than 150.
Shibli anticipates that rationing will increase should Turkey continue on this path.
Only two of the dam’s six turbines are operational. It only feeds Manbij and other areas in the region with 140 megawatts for five hours daily, yet the region needs at least 1,000 megawatts.