Ecuador This Wednesday he ordered the suspension of public and private works for two days, in view of the energy crisis caused by a historic deficit in the reservoirs that supply hydroelectric plants, causing power outages of up to six hours.
The country’s president, Daniel Noboa, ordered the “suspension of the working day” on Thursday and Friday, the presidency said in a statement, in which it attributed its decision not only to “environmental circumstances” but also to “unprecedented acts of corruption and negligence “ justified.” “.
Noboa declared a state of emergency in the electricity sector on Tuesday and called for the resignation of then Energy Minister Andrea Arrobo.
After early rationing last Sunday, Noboa on Tuesday transferred the energy portfolio to the head of transport and public works, Roberto Luque, and ordered an investigation into suspected corruption in electricity production.
The power plants will carry out maintenance work on their facilities on Thursday and Friday, which will mean rationing that will be announced in a timely manner, he added.
In addition to the water crisis suffered by Ecuador, Colombia has stopped exporting energy to the country to combat the severe drought linked to the El Niño phenomenon, in which the country’s water reservoirs are at less than 30% of their capacity .
“Critical Conditions”
Given the energy crisis, the President announced that only 50% of household electricity bills will be billed in April.
The Ecuadorian government announced on Wednesday that the Mazar (the main) and Paute reservoirs, both in the southern Andes, are in “critical condition” as they have storage levels of 0% and 4%, respectively.
Likewise, the flow at the largest hydroelectric plant, Coca Codo Sinclair (Northern Amazon), which supplies 30% of national demand and generates 1,500 MW of electricity, is in a deficit of 40% compared to the historical average.
Working days are restored in the public sector with an additional hour on the following working days, while in the private sector it depends on the companies.
According to official figures, Ecuador has a population of 17.7 million and a working population of 8.3 million.
The government said the investigation ordered by Noboa, who took office in November and ruled for 18 months, found “evidence that senior officials” including Arrobo “deliberately concealed information important to the functioning of the national energy system.”
Complaint against “saboteurs”
The executive alleged that “warnings and warnings to the Energy Crisis Committee were suppressed and reversed with the aim of preventing this serious situation from being noted for timely decision-making.”
In addition, he filed a complaint with the Public Prosecutor’s Office for paralysis of the public service against 22 “saboteurs who tried to harm all Ecuadorians.”
The energy crisis occurred on the eve of the plebiscite and referendum this Sunday, promoted by Noboa and whose main axis is the fight against drug trafficking. Almost 13.6 million voters are being asked to decide, for example, whether they agree with the extradition of Ecuadorians in connection with organized crime.
“They wanted to ruin us with sabotage in the electrical sector, they wanted to ruin us with a dirty campaign (…) because they are nervous because the yes will win,” Noboa said this Wednesday at an event in the Atacames Resort (North West). .
In January, the president declared Ecuador an “internal armed conflict” and deployed the military to neutralize twenty criminal gangs that years ago turned the country, located between Colombia and Peru – the world’s largest cocaine producers – into a shipping logistics hub Drugs to the USA and Europe.
