Tunisia president sacks energy minister ahead of renewable energy projects vote

Tunisia’s President Kais ​Saied dismissed Energy ​Minister Fatma Thabet ‌on Tuesday, ​amid growing controversy over renewable energy projects set to ‌be voted on in parliament. No detailed explanation was ‌provided for the decision. The move comes as Saied's government seeks to pass draft laws on renewable energy, which ⁠will ​be ⁠put to a vote in parliament later on Tuesday.

Tunisia’s President Kais ​Saied dismissed Energy ​Minister Fatma Thabet ‌on Tuesday, ​amid growing controversy over renewable energy projects set to ‌be voted on in parliament. Saied said he had appointed Housing and Infrastructure Minister Salah Eddine Zouari to ‌temporarily oversee the ministry. No detailed explanation was ‌provided for the decision.

The move comes as Saied's government seeks to pass draft laws on renewable energy, which ⁠will ​be ⁠put to a vote in parliament later on Tuesday. The projects ⁠have a planned capacity of 600 megawatts, with 500 ​million euros ($585 million) as total investment.

The projects ⁠are part of Tunisia’s efforts to expand clean energy ⁠production. ​Some lawmakers and political parties oppose the projects, describing them as a form ⁠of "energy colonisation." They have criticised the exclusion of the state electricity company (STEG) ⁠from ⁠the contracts, which they say were awarded exclusively to foreign firms.

($1 = 0.8546 ‌euros) (Reporting ‌By Tarek Amara Editing by ​Keith Weir)