In Uzbekistan, an advance notification system for consumers regarding planned power outages may be launched

System to notify consumers in advance about planned power outages may be launched in Uzbekistan

In Uzbekistan, it is planned to launch a system to notify electricity consumers about planned outages one or two days in advance. This was announced by the head of "Regional Electric Networks" Sardor Iskulov.

According to Sardor Iskulov, it is impossible to completely eliminate all power supply outages. This is because emergency outages can also occur on the networks. At the same time, planned outages are necessary for equipment repair and modernization.

"If we do not shut off the power in a planned manner and modernize certain networks, we will go through the winter season with problems," said the head of the enterprise.

He explained that during repairs, specialists replace insulators, adjust wires, and perform other technical work. To ensure employee safety, the network being repaired must be temporarily disconnected. An average of 15–20 transformer points can be connected to a single network. Therefore, power supply is also interrupted at these points during repairs.

The head of the enterprise stated that during the approximately two and a half months since he took office, a strategy for digitalizing network operations was developed. Technical requirements were prepared, and an initial presentation was held by Uzinfocom.

The digitalization system covers several tasks. In particular, it is planned to monitor employees' activities at the workplace, the targeted delivery of materials provided to them, and the repair work being performed on specific devices.

It is also envisaged to introduce a mechanism for notifying consumers about planned outages in advance.

According to Iskulov's example, if repair work is planned at a specific transformer point, a warning will be sent from a Telegram bot one or two days in advance via the phone numbers of consumers connected to it. The message will specify on which day and from what time to what time the power supply will be cut off, as well as an apology for the inconvenience caused.

According to the head of the enterprise, Uzinfocom presented an initial version of the application. It is planned to combine functions for working with consumers, monitoring employee activities, and call-center operations.

However, additional changes were recommended for the technical requirements of the system's development. Therefore, the next presentation is scheduled for next week.

"For now, an exact deadline has not been stated. They are asking for about two to three months, because for digitalization, we need to enter all the information into the database," Iskulov said.

Thus, the launch date for the notification system via Telegram has not yet been set. Its timeline is expected to be clarified after the next presentation.

During the press conference, a question was also asked about why power outages cause more discontent in winter.

Sardor Iskulov stated that repair work is carried out continuously in both summer and winter. In his opinion, consumers notice winter outages more due to cold weather and shorter days.

The head of the enterprise noted that the number of power supply outages and their duration are also reflected in international ranking indicators. He stated that this information can be found through the het.uz platform.

Iskulov emphasized that the advance notification system for planned outages will allow consumers to adjust their daily plans accordingly. This is expected to serve to improve relations between the electric networks enterprise and consumers.