Saudi excess vs Europe distress shaping the 161,000-gigawatt cooling challenge 
On June 26 this year, the Saudi economic platform Argaam reported that the commercial operation of the electricity interconnection project between the Kingdom and Egypt had been postponed, noting that this was a precautionary measure due to the record-high electricity consumption during the current summer.
This postponement confirms that weather fluctuations are dictating energy plans and projects at the regional level, as authorities seek to avoid the risks of instability in the power grids caused by the intensive use of air-conditioners in both countries. And it does not stop there; heat waves have turned into a perplexing crisis these days, as evidenced by the fact that most European countries are grappling with their own challenges posed by so-called heat domes, which trap hot air inside cities, turning them into closed-off ovens.
In Paris and London, people have been lining up to buy inexpensive air-conditioners to protect themselves from temperatures reaching the high-40s Celsius, which is to be expected given the outdated urban planning of European cities, their greater focus on winter than summer, and their prioritization of warmth over cold, to the extent that most buildings lack thermal insulation from the ground up.
The summer crisis facing European buildings has been revealed in the numbers. According to French emergency services data, Paris recorded a death toll of 109 people in a 24-hour period last June, whereas the usual figure at this time of year, and in previous years, never exceeded seven deaths a day, meaning it has increased by a factor of 15.5. For the record, heat-related deaths at home are confirmed by a report from the platform: “Lancet Countdown for Europe,” released in April 2026, which documented that European summer deaths at home exceeded 62,775 cases across 32 countries in 2025 as a result of heat stress and the lack of safe cooling methods.
Extreme heat cannot be reduced to a mere feeling of discomfort, as it poses a genuine danger that takes a toll on the body, leading to damage to the circulatory system and the heart, sudden heart attacks and strokes, as well as acute kidney failure caused by dehydration and fluid loss. These risks disproportionately affect certain age groups, particularly those over 65, because they lack the vital ability to feel thirst and to automatically regulate their body temperature. This also applies to newborns and children under five, given that their internal heat production rate is high and their sweat secretion is low, which exposes them to the risk of rapid heat absorption and, consequently, organ failure within a few hours.
Most European countries are grappling with challenges posed by so-called heat domes, which trap hot air inside cities.
In contrast, the Kingdom faces a different kind of problem — that of chronic heat stress and the massive depletion of resources. According to the Household Energy Statistics Report issued by the Saudi General Authority for Statistics, air-conditioning alone accounts for nearly 70 percent of residential electricity bills in the summer, representing a massive consumption exceeding 161,000 gigawatts. According to data from the Ministry of Energy, the amount of energy consumed by air-conditioners in Saudi Arabia during the summer season equals the total annual electricity consumption of Jordan, Lebanon, Tunisia and Morocco combined. While this provides residential comfort, it is extremely costly. Saudis rank 15th globally in per capita energy consumption, according to the International Energy Agency’s annual report for 2025. This consumption, which is primarily directed toward cooling, is double that of the UK and nine times that of most developing countries.
To alleviate domestic pressure on the conventional electricity grid, solar energy and green hydrogen must be used for cooling.
In addition, rising temperatures have become a key driver of what is known as “thermal inflation,” an economic term. Data from the European Commission revealed that losses in the agricultural sector between 2020 and 2024 exceeded $15.3 billion and caused a 60 percent increase in the price of basic commodities such as olive oil, while extreme heat continues to damage infrastructure.
A 2024 report by the International Energy Agency warned that traditional electrical distribution transformers in northern and central Europe would lose up to 25 percent of their energy transmission efficiency for every 5 degrees Celsius above 35 degrees Celsius. This increases the likelihood of them exploding or catching fire under pressure by 40 percent, whereas Saudi power plants are distinguished, from an engineering standpoint, by their use of advanced cooling systems and coastal plants that rely on seawater — all technologies designed for desert climates. The difference is not merely a matter of the numbers recorded on a thermometer, but determined by factors such as humidity and the efficiency of thermal insulation.
In Europe, structural design flaws make a temperature of 42 degrees Celsius in Paris more dangerous to people than 48 degrees Celsius in the Al-Ahsa Oasis in Saudi Arabia.
This extreme climate crisis requires legislative and engineering solutions, most notably an immediate shift from glass facades and concrete buildings — which trap heat inside — to heat-insulating architectural standards.
The Council of European Energy Regulators estimated at the end of 2025 that the cost of repairing and upgrading Europe’s current electricity grids, to enable them to handle summer air-conditioning loads, will cost $101 billion and 366 million. This includes the replacement of railroad tracks with steel rails capable of withstanding expansion up to 50 degrees Celsius, thereby preventing train stoppages, similar to the approach taken by Saudi trains such as the Haramain Express.
There is a shift toward the full adoption of drones to address the inability of giant firefighting aircraft, such as the Canadair, to take off when temperatures exceed 44 degrees Celsius — due to reduced air density and their inability to generate the lift necessary for a safe take-off while carrying their full water load.
• Dr. Bader bin Saud is a columnist for Al-Riyadh newspaper, a researcher in media and knowledge management, a university professor and expert in crowd management and strategic planning, and the former deputy commander of the Special Forces for Hajj and Umrah in Saudi Arabia. X: @BaderbinSaud.
