Quito. Ecuador put energy rationing into effect this Sunday in 12 of its 24 provinces due to a prolonged drought that keeps the main hydroelectric plants in a crisis situation.
The eight-hour outages take place in provinces located in the Andean region and the Amazon, according to the Emergency Operations Committee, which declared maximum alert on Saturday night in 19 provinces “due to water deficit, fires and food insecurity.” ”. This declaration will allow material and economic resources to be expedited to the most affected areas.
Rationing began a day earlier than previously announced by the government.
According to reports from the authorities, the country registers a deficit in electricity generation of around 1,100 megawatts caused by the advance of the dry season and an acute drought in almost the entire territory, especially in southern Ecuador, where is the largest national hydroelectric generation complex.
In that area there has been no significant rain in 71 days, which has caused the water reserves of the Mazar dam to be reduced to a critical situation and on the verge of stopping the flow that feeds three generation plants that depend on it.
This acute drought has been identified by the government as the worst in more than six decades and has additionally generated the conditions for the spread of large forest fires that have already consumed nearly 37 thousand hectares in recent weeks, 16 thousand of them in the province of Loja, border with Peru.
Another consequence is the rationing of drinking water in populations of at least nine provinces, with cuts of up to 20 hours a day, and the increase in the cost of agricultural products.
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– 2024-09-29 23:17:17
