Tunisia’s President, Kais Saied, dismissed the country’s Minister for Energy and Trade, Fatma Thabet, on Tuesday ahead of a parliamentary meeting to review controversial draft laws on renewable energy contracts.
The presidency announced the dismissal in a brief statement, offering no explanation. The move comes amid sharp criticism from unionists and lawmakers over five government-approved bills regulating concessions to foreign companies, primarily for the installation of solar panels.
According to the proposed bills, foreign firms could exploit the energy produced by the panels for 20 years, renewable once for an additional 10 years, with the first five years exempt from taxes. The energy would be sold to the Tunisian state electricity and gas company, known as STEG.
When presenting the proposed bills, the government argued that they would “boost Tunisia’s energy independence, guarantee its energy supply, and lower electricity production costs.” Tunisia imports the majority of its energy needs, placing a major strain on the annual budget due to subsidies on fuel, electricity, and gas.
According to the state secretary for energy transition, Wael Chouchane, renewable energy accounted for 9% of Tunisia’s grid in April, with a target of 35% by 2030.
The government recently announced investment projects worth nearly $600 million to install solar panels with a combined capacity of 600 megawatts, equivalent to a quarter of the country’s annual consumption. These projects would focus on marginalized areas with low economic growth but abundant sunshine, such as central and southern Tunisia.
In a statement on Tuesday, the powerful UGTT trade union denounced the draft bills, saying they “perpetuate dependence [on foreign countries] and weaken national sovereignty.” It demanded “fair and equitable partnerships” between STEG and foreign firms.
MP Bilel El Mechri, who recently criticized what he called “energy colonisation,” welcomed the minister’s dismissal and demanded that she be “tried for compromising national sovereignty.”
Housing Minister Salah Eddine Zouari will take up Chiboub’s tasks on an interim basis, the presidency said.
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