Water levels continue to drop at hydro plants; Diesel in short supply for businesses; Colombia resumes electricity sales; Ecuador’s famous Siamese twins die

The water level of the Mazar hydroelectric complex reservoir continues to drop, losing almost three meters in three days since late Tuesday. On Friday morning, the reservoir was eight meters above the minimum operational level of 2,115 meters above sea level.

The water levels at all seven of the Ecuador’s largest hydro facilities were in the low category Friday morning, which was limiting electrical generation, according to the National Electricity Operator (Cenace).

The country’s largest hydro plant, Coca Codo Sinclair, was generating 562MW on Friday, less than 50% of capacity.

Ecuador’s famous Siamese twins José Luis and José Armando Cevallos died Thursday morning in Colombia. They were 27.

In southwestern Azuay Province, Minas San Francisco was operating at less than 5% capacity as its reservoir was only 1.8 meters above minimum operational level.

Colombia resumes electricity sales to Ecuador
Private Colombian energy companies will be allowed to resume sales of electricity to Ecuador following an order by Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella. Sales were suspended September 17 when de la Espriella declared an energy emergency in Colombia.

It is unclear the amount of electricity that will be transferred or its cost, although a spokesman at Ecuador’s Energy Ministry said he believed transfers would be “modest” due to demands for power within Colombia. He also said the cost would be high, as much as $1 per kilowatt-hour, almost 10 times the cost paid by Ecuadorian utility customers.

Power transmission lines between Colombia and Ecuador can carry a maximum of 450 megawatts of electricity but have never operated above 350 MWs. At 10 a.m. Friday, Cenace reported that 30MW was transferred to Ecuador.

Businesses demand clear communication, complain of diesel shortage
Ecuadorian businesses are complaining that the government is providing “confusing and conflicting” information about electricity restrictions. “We receive notices on various social media platforms, some of it by word of mouth, and little of it can be relied on,” says Andrés Robalino, executive director of the Ecuadorian Business Committee. “Last week we were promised that 48-hour blackouts would not be extended but the next day we were ordered to disconnect for 72 hours. Who can we believe? Who can we trust?”

Robalino and other business officials are asking for daily meetings with officials from the Energy Ministry and the Secretary of Public Administration. “We need to receive information from proper sources and we are not currently receiving that,” he said.

An issue that requires immediate attention, Robalino says, is the difficulty of obtaining diesel fuel for generators. “We were told to generate our own power but many of us cannot obtain the fuel to do this and operate our machines,” he said. “We appear to be competing with the government for imported diesel.”

Ecuador’s famous Siamese twins die at 27
Siamese twins José Luis and José Armando Cevallos died Thursday morning in Colombia where they were being fitted with equipment to help them walk. The twins, 27, gained worldwide media coverage when they were young and gave frequent interviews throughout their lives.

According to a doctor at a clinic near Bogota, one of the twins suffered a heart attack and his brother died about an hour later. In recent years, the twins were social media content creators, sharing reports on their day-to-day life, travels and offering messages of self-improvement and encouragement.