The worst drought that Ecuador has experienced in the last 50 years is the trigger for electricity rationing that will begin this Friday, October 27, throughout the territory of Ecuador, according to the Minister of Energy and Mining Fernando Santos Alvite announced today.

The power outage will begin this Friday the 27th and will last between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. In the Sierra and Amazon regions, the cuts will last four hours, while on the coast they will last three hours.

Business units and electrical companies

Each electricity distribution company will operate cuts in a way that will cause the least complications to citizens. No local companies have yet announced specific schedules.

There are eleven business units of CNEL, which must submit schedules for each area per province:

In addition, there are the following power companies:

Lack of rain in Amazonia

Minister Santos Alvite said that it will be limited to four hours a day in order to solve the deficit caused by the low flow in the tributaries that supply the hydroelectric plants.

“We see the need, in order to ensure that there is no electrical collapse, to organize special and temporary cuts in the electricity supply in the country,” Santos said.

The measure could be extended until December, while the state buys energy.

“At night and early in the morning, due to the insecurity in the country, there will be no power cuts,” added the minister.

He Last week, the Ministry of Energy and Mining declared a state of emergency in the power sector after Colombia restricted energy sales to the country.