Ecuador’s Power Cuts to Continue Until December
Ecuadorian police patrol the streets amid blackouts, Oct. 15, 2024. X/ @lavisionatl
October 16, 2024 Hour: 8:57 am
Blackouts have severely affected productivity, with business losses estimated at US$12 million for each hour of power outage.
During this week, Ecuadorians will continue to experience severe power outages that are disrupting daily life and productive activities in a country whose economy will remain stagnant or decline this year.
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“Until the end of December we will have power outages,” Energy Minister Ines Manzano announced during a television interview on Monday.
Power availability will improve by the end of November, she vowed, adding that President Daniel Noboa’s administration will “control, improve and compensate for service interruptions.”
Ecuador is currently facing its worst drought in six decades, which has caused an energy deficit of 1,080 megawatts. The energy crisis worsened on September 30, after Colombia, which is also suffering from a severe drought, announced the temporary suspension of electricity exports to Ecuador.
The blackouts in Ecuador have severely affected productivity, with business losses estimated at US$12 million for each hour of power outage.
On Tuesday, the National Assembly’s Oversight Committee approved the start of the impeachment process against former Energy Minister Andrea Arrobo, who was accused of the blackouts that occurred in February.
During the debate, several legislators agreed that she could be responsible for the electricity crisis, but they also noted that the Noboa administration is being questioned for this very reason. They also indicated that the country requires answers because the crisis affects all sectors of society.
Arrobo was Energy Minister between November 2023 until mid-April, when President Noboa ordered blackouts of six hours on average. She was accused by the government itself of allegedly hiding information and failing to warn about the risk of energy rationing due to the drastic reduction of reservoirs at the country’s main hydroelectric plants.
Arrobo rejected the accusations and assured that she duly warned Noboa of the need to begin disconnecting power in the middle of a referendum campaign promoted by Noboa himself to implement reforms that sought to strengthen the fight against organized crime in the country.
teleSUR/ JF Sources: EFE – Xinhua
