Kuwaiti Mosques to Limit Prayer Times and Cooling to Cut Electricity Use
The decision follows a request from the Ministry of Electricity, Water, and Renewable Energy.
According to a circular issued by the Mosques Department in Hawalli Governorate, prayer durations are to be shortened, indoor prayer halls will be restricted, and air conditioning use will be reduced. These steps are part of a broader campaign that includes scheduled power cuts across all six governorates.
Under the new guidelines, mosques are to keep main indoor prayer halls closed for all five daily prayers. Worshippers are instead encouraged to pray in outdoor courtyards. Indoor facilities will open only for Friday prayers, with air conditioning set to 22°C on automatic mode from Thursday evening until the conclusion of the service.
Read More:
For regular daily prayers, if air conditioning is used in outdoor spaces, it must be set at 25°C. Women’s prayer areas are to remain closed except when religious classes are held, in which case cooling systems are permitted under the same temperature limits and must be turned off immediately after.
The directive also instructs imams to reduce the interval between the adhan (call to prayer) and iqama (start of prayer), particularly for Dhuhr and Asr prayers. The prayers themselves are also to be kept brief.
Power cuts are scheduled to occur twice daily—beginning 30 minutes after noon prayers until shortly before afternoon prayers, and again from after afternoon prayers until 5 p.m.
Source: Agencies
