Malta has hit a new peak electricity demand of 624 megawatts as power outages persist across the island.

In a media briefing, Enemalta CEO Jonathan Cardona said the sustained heatwave was impacting the energy provider’s distribution network.

Cardona said nine more faults developed overnight due to the heat, which is penetrating the ground and impacting Enemalta’s cables.

He reiterated that the new peak record load of 624 megawatts was still short of Enemalta’s overall generation capacity of 830 megawatts.

Further explaining the cause of the faults, Cardona said that while in the past heatwaves only lasted for a few days, the current heatwave is a sustained one.

Cardona assured that Enemalta’s workers were putting in a tireless effort to fix these faults.

The problem was compounded when multiple faults were experienced in the same area.

Power in Birkirkara, parts of which have been impacted by some of the latest faults, is expected to be back by 7pm, Cardona said.

Call 153 if you have a power cut query

Cardona said Enemalta has beefed up its customer care capacity, to deal with the increase in customer queries in response to the outages.

He said people now also have the option of contacting the government services hotline on 153.

Enemalta chairman Ryan Fava dismissed claims by PN MP Mark Anthony Sammut that the company was resorting to “rationing” electricity supply.

Fava said Enemalta is shifting the energy load on different substations, to make good for any outages in the surrounding areas.

In 2021, Enemalta pledged to accelerate investment in its distribution network, following a spate of power outages that were put down to high temperatures.

Fava said most of the faults encountered recently were on older cables.

Energy Minister Miriam Dalli said Enemalta was evaluating claims for compensation being filed by consumers.

She said other possible options for compensation were also being discussed.

The minister declined to say what these options are.