Government ‘clarifies’ blackout schedule, says new target is the end of December; Rain fills local rivers
A day after saying she planned to fulfill President Daniel Noboa’s promise to end electric blackouts December 1, Energy Minister Inés Manzano said the new target is the end of December. Following her video announcement, Manzano’s office released a social media statement saying the change was a “clarification of a misunderstanding.”
The Mazar reservoir
Energy policy critics had questioned Noboa’s December 1 plan since he first announced it in mid-October. “There was no basis for it when he brought it up and there is not much more now,” said Quito electrical engineering professor Andrés Oquendo. “It is hard to understand why the government continues to make commitments it can’t keep.”
According to Oquendo, the only way blackouts will end soon is if this week’s rain continues. “We have had three days of good rain but this must continue for a prolonged period before power outages can end,” he said. “Maybe this will happen, but we are still many days, or even weeks, away from it in the best-case scenario.”
On Thursday the rivers in Azuay and Cañar Provinces had recovered to normal flow levels following two days of rain. More rain Thursday afternoon helped maintain the higher flow.
Although the water level at the Mazar Reservoir remained unchanged since Monday, it was because two of the three downstream power plants were put back into operation. “There is more water entering the reservoir and this has allowed us to activate the turbines at the Paute and Sopladora plants,” plant engineer Walter Iglesias said.
The reactivation of the Paute-Mazer turbines drew criticism from energy consultant Juan Ortiz, who said the Mazar turbines should remain idle so the reservoir water level can rise. “We have told repeatedly that the plan is to keep these facilities out of service so the reservoir to recover,” he said. “Instead, on four occasions in the two three weeks, the turbines have been turned on, meaning more water is discharged, preventing recovery of the reservoir.”
On Thursday the Energy Ministry announced that six- and seven-hour blackouts will continue through the weekend. The schedule for Azuay, Cañar and Morona Santiago Provinces for November 29 to December 1 is posted on the Centrosur website.
