On July 17, 2026, the capital of Kyrgyzstan and several regions were left without electricity due to a large-scale power system failure. The blackout in Bishkek also caused a temporary halt in drinking water supply, according to infohub.kz.
According to the Ministry of Energy of the Kyrgyz Republic, a technical fault occurred on the 220 kV high-voltage lines "Kara-Balta — Glavnaya" and "Glavnaya — Shu," triggering an automatic load shedding system.
The accident affected most of Bishkek, as well as the Chuy, Naryn, Talas, and Osh regions. The Issyk-Kul region and the city of Osh were not affected.
The city hall explained that due to the power outage, water intake facilities temporarily stopped working. Pumping stations are being restarted manually as power is restored.
By evening, specialists from the National Electric Grid of Kyrgyzstan (NESK) began a phased restoration of power supply. Despite repeated outages in some areas, the situation is gradually normalizing. The exact cause of the fault on the power lines is being determined.