In Syria, anger rises over soaring electricity prices

In his blacksmith workshop located in a Damascus suburb, Ghassan Aama fumes over the Syrian authorities’ decision to sharply hike electricity prices, nearly a year after President Bashar al-Assad’s fall. "We were surprised to see the electricity tariffs go up," worries the white-haired man. "Our income is limited, if bills are high, we won't be able to make ends meet."

At the end of October, the Ministry of Energy announced new electricity rates, multiplying bills by at least 60. "We survived a war that destroyed our homes and all our possessions. We thought things would get better, not worse," adds Aama, referring to the December 2024 rise to power by Ahmad al-Sharaa's coalition, which ended more than 13 years of devastating war in Syria.

Like many residents of the Damascus area, he is forced to pay a subscription to use a private generator due to frequent and lengthy blackouts.

Liberalization

The new authorities have taken Syria, long suffocated by international sanctions, out of political isolation and are seeking funds to rebuild the country — a cost that could top $216 billion, according to the World Bank.

The civil war severely damaged the electricity infrastructure, causing outages that can last more than 20 hours per day.

The decision "is part of the increased liberalization the government appeared to announce earlier this year,” economic expert Jihad Yazigi told AFP. The new authorities "are trying to put an end to subsidies," notably for electricity. He notes that the economy under al-Assad was “relatively liberal, and now they are liberalizing even more,” citing the price of bread, which is no longer subsidized, as an example.

"After the liberation [the fall of al-Assad’s government], people expected the country to rebuild quickly. We thought things would get better,” laments Mohieddine Salam, a real estate agent. "Now, electricity rates have skyrocketed. If my rent is $200 and the electricity bill is between $200 and $400, what am I supposed to do?" he asks.

'No one will pay'

On a busy street in Damascus, Alaa Moussa, who has set up a stand on the ground to sell coffee and biscuits, doesn’t hide her anger. "No one will pay. No one has any money. Let them stop supplying electricity altogether, it would be better," she says. "There’s no work, all the factories are closed. We didn’t expect this, we thought money would start flowing" after Assad’s fall, she adds.

Interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa's government has announced major investment deals with regional countries to rebuild infrastructure.

Qatar announced it will fund a project to supply gas for electricity production in Syria, with a first phase launched in March via Jordan, providing 400 megawatts of electricity per day. But these projects have yet to improve daily life for Syrians, nine out of ten of whom live in poverty and one in four are unemployed, according to the U.N.

Many of them turn to odd jobs to survive, like Oum al-Zein, a 43-year-old mother who sells bread on the street. "How can I pay the electricity bill when I can barely cover my son’s university fees?" says the woman, her face framed by a red scarf.

"We barely have electricity for an hour a day. This winter, we’ll have to keep warm under blankets."