Ecuador announces new electricity rationing two days after a massive blackout

The authorities of Ecuador announced this Friday new electricity rationing due to the temporary closure of operations of one of the main hydroelectric generation plants, two days after a massive blackout in all the country.

The National Electricity operator indicated on its , due to the sediments, stones and logs carried by the flow, which prevent the production of electrical energy.

The floodgates were closed and “it is necessary to make power cuts,” that organization highlighted and added that the energy distribution companies will prepare schedules for the power cuts.

The Quito Electric Company announced on its website that in the case of the capital the cuts will last between one and two hours in some sectors, but they are “subject to variability or improvement of the situation in real time.” Rationing will be similar in the rest of the country.

The Associated Press He requested a statement from the Ministry of Energy, but did not immediately receive a response.

Ecuador has been facing an energy crisis since last year, on that occasion due to the lack of rain that caused a deficit in electricity generation to cover demand and that worsened in April, when the government imposed electricity service cuts that in some provinces. They extended up to 12 hours a day.

Although power rationing ended in May, the country suffered a massive blackout on Wednesday that Energy Minister Roberto Luque said was due to a transmission line failure.

A “cascading disconnection” was generated, he indicated, which left more than 17 million Ecuadorians without electricity. “It is one more sign that the energy system is in crisis,” she admitted.

Ecuador consumes a daily average of 4,570 megawatts, of which the Coca Codo Sinclair hydroelectric plant produces about 1,500.

According to the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology, rain and storms are expected in the Amazon region, where the plant is located, between Friday and Sunday.

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