Nationwide Power Outage Hits Malta and Gozo After Interconnector Trip
· Updated
In brief
- A widespread power cut affected localities across Malta and Gozo on Thursday morning, causing disruptions to transport, buildings, and events.
- The failure occurred when the subsea electricity interconnector linking Malta to Sicily was disconnected, forcing the grid onto domestic generation.
- Enemalta confirmed that automatic protection systems were activated and electricity supply was gradually restored to affected localities.
A widespread power outage hit multiple localities across Malta and Gozo on Thursday morning, causing disruptions across both islands.
The unexpected electricity failure left people trapped in lifts, disabled traffic lights at major junctions, and interrupted university events during the morning peak.
The disruption occurred after the subsea interconnector to Sicily was switched offline, cutting Malta off from its primary link to imported European electricity.
With the undersea cable connection unavailable, the national network was forced to rely solely on domestic power stations to meet electricity demand.
Grid operator Enemalta stated that an automatic protection system was immediately triggered across the network to prevent broader damage to the national grid.
Enemalta added that electricity supply was being restored in phases, with power successfully returned to several localities shortly after the initial tripping incident.
The Spin Room
Low media divide. All outlets reported the power disruption and subsequent restoration efforts consistently without notable framing differences.
Updates
- : Updated with reporting from TVM News and ONE News: electricity supply was fully restored across all affected localities after safety clearances were completed.