As global energy pressure intensifies under the combined effects of artificial intelligence, data centers, and the low-carbon transition, Tunisia finds itself at a strategic crossroads.
Our dependence on natural gas, the structural rise in electricity demand, and budget constraints demand a rupture in the model. This rupture has a name that is still little publicized: the virtual power plant.
Unlike a conventional power plant, the Virtual Power Plant (VPP) is not a single physical infrastructure. It is a digital platform that aggregates thousands of small solar production units, domestic and industrial batteries, and flexible loads (agricultural pumping, tertiary air conditioning, charging of electric vehicles), to operate them as a single smart plant.
The challenge for Tunisia is considerable. By structuring a national VPP by 2030, we could raise the share of renewable energy to 35–40% of the electricity mix, reduce our gas imports by almost 20%, and attract private investments estimated at 3 to 4 billion dollars. The flexibility thus created would also help safeguard the installation of regional data centers, a fast-growing sector where electrical stability has become a major geopolitical criterion.
The VPP is not merely a technological tool. It is an instrument of sovereignty. It enables real-time optimization of production and consumption, monetization of frequency services, arbitration of electricity prices, and the transformation of every citizen equipped with solar panels into an actor within the energy system.
Three structural steps must be undertaken immediately: a regulatory framework allowing private aggregation, a pilot program in major cities, and the progressive integration of distributed batteries into the national grid. The digitization of the electric system thus becomes a strategic priority, on par with international interconnections or green hydrogen projects.
By 2030, the question will no longer be whether Tunisia should digitalize its grid, but whether it has managed to anticipate this transformation. The virtual power plant represents a unique opportunity to turn an energy constraint into a competitive advantage.
The energy future will not be solely renewable. It will be intelligent.
Imed Derouiche – Expert in energy, hydrogen and the digital transition
