Caracas. A nationwide power outage has occurred in Venezuela. According to reports, a major power surge was recorded at 4:50 a.m. on Friday, followed by a blackout that affected all 24 states.
Communications Minister Freddy Ñáñez spoke of an “attack” on the electrical infrastructure: “Once again, we are victims of acts of sabotage in the electricity supply, which affect many states, including the capital,” he said in a radio interview. Ñáñez added that buses had been used in Caracas to replace the subway system.
Earlier, President Nicolás Maduro condemned the “criminal attack” on the electricity network in a social media post, referring to “desperate fascist” sectors and calling on the population to remain calm.
Venezuela had major problems with its electricity supply in 2019: a blackout in March left the country in the dark for several days before supplies were gradually restored. The Maduro government condemned a serious terrorist attack on the Guri Dam, the country’s main source of electricity.
At around 1:15 p.m. on Friday, electricity was restored in some areas of Caracas and in other states. Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said the authorities would take “all necessary measures” to restore power throughout the country and protect the power grid from new attacks. He assured that investigations into the reported acts of sabotage were underway.
By 3:30 p.m., social media users and local press reported that power had been at least partially restored in all states, including Zulia and Táchira in western Venezuela.
At a press conference on Friday evening, Maduro explained that the blackout was caused by an attack on the Simón Bolívar hydroelectric plant, known as the Guri Dam, the country’s main source of electricity. The 10,235 MW dam is located in the east of Bolívar state.
He added that “the sabotage has different characteristics” from the 2019 incident, when a suspected cyberattack compromised the computerized system. This time, the transmission lines were the target, and “given the scale,” the aim appears to have been to cause permanent damage.
The president explained that the dam’s protection system had been significantly improved over the past four years, preventing a collapse. Maduro assured that investigations to determine who was responsible would continue, but again pointed to ultra-right groups.
The opposition politician Andrés Velásquez, leader of the Causa R party, designated However, he described it as “an impudence” that the government is blaming former presidential candidate Edmundo González and opposition leader María Corina Machado for the power outage.
This is “the easiest way to get out of the situation. But the whole country knows that the lack of basic services such as electricity, water, health and others is due to Maduro’s negligence, corruption and incompetence,” Velásquez continued on Platform X.
