Energy Minister Andrea Arrobo indicated that a new assessment will be made on January 8 to determine whether there will be another blackout or no blackouts during the two most difficult dry months of January and February. Additionally, in an interview for this newspaper, he explains the measures that will be taken to guarantee the stability of thermogeneration. The ITT issue is currently under evaluation.

It is announced that there will be no shutdown until at least January 15, 2024, what will happen from January 16?

These rains, which have been repeated in recent days, have allowed us to manage the reservoirs well. Good management in combination with hydroelectric power plants that do not have storage allowed us to take advantage of electricity production and increase reserves. In this way, the available thermal energy was used – apart from the structural deficiency – to maintain the hydrological reserves of Paute, Molino and Mazar.

But then we continue to depend on rain for the next few weeks?

We continue to depend on the weather and the entry of certain thermal parks that we are strengthening, while we work on hiring a new generation off the coast. We are in the process of opening these proposals. It is important to know that historically the two driest months are January and February and therefore we cannot have a long-term assessment, but we do a week-by-week assessment and this allowed us to make the decision to suspend the blackout both times, the first weeks of January. We will do the next assessment on January 8th to decide on the days after January 15th.

Some engines that Celec bought in the previous period were supposed to arrive on land, what happened to that?

Those additional engines did not arrive, nor did the generation that they explained to us would be in mid-December, and it is tied to the contract with Energyquil, work. What we’ve moved forward on is the blower rotor repair schedule that was supposed to be done in February and will now be done in the first days of January.

But nothing is known about these two measures (engines and Energyquil) that were supposed to help fight the dry season?

We collect planning information. We changed managers, because we cannot rely on the management reports they left us. We go into this week with a change of manager so we can effectively assess what’s going on. We are currently clearly focusing on what we have implemented and improved, and we are submitting the rest to the Supervisor’s Office for verification.

I imagine then that we are holding back from Colombia now, how are we doing, especially with the tariff? Celec will also have to buy energy, how will that process take place?

Dependency has decreased with Colombia because of our own generation. Since my administration, we have reached a binational agreement with the Minister of Colombia. Today the price is 11 cents per kilowatt hour, this helps us to cover the following days when we could keep importing, although it is not excluded that there are days when we do not need this energy. This is where the importance of the Energy Competitiveness Act comes into play. The idea is to break the dependence on energy imports, which is good to have, but we must also promote our own generation. In fact, we will have a new import line with Peru. But we have also received visits from international and domestic investors who are interested in implementing new generation projects with different types of technology. First, it is necessary to renew the power of the thermal park because the unavailability is 450 MW.

On the very last day of the last government, the tender for the purchase of energy to electrical distributors was canceled, does that also harm production?

A new generation barge in five months should never have been thought of. We planned it to be 18 months. We have to face the dry season and rebuild the thermal park and maintain the hydroelectric plants. Along with this variation of hydroelectric and thermal energy, we must have auxiliary energy off the coast. The goal is that the energy that will be rented lowers its price the longer the term is. The idea is to have the stability to restore the power sector in ten months, to implement a consolidated restructuring of investments in the power sector. All this goes in parallel with the Law on Competition.

Will this purchase that Celec will make be with the tender, but not only for five months, but for 18? Has the value been calculated, will it be higher?

The scheme we use is different. It will not be a competition or tender, as it would be a very long process that would take at least a year. We will sit down together with Sercop and the Office of the Comptroller as advisers to do this with a devolved management scheme, through Celec. An evaluation of the proposal with the best cost and time will be carried out. In the revised proposals, they amount to 17 cents per kilowatt hour. We buy the energy they give us. The only thing that is not included is the fuel because we deliver it through Petroecuador.

What are the most important points of the law that has just entered the Parliament?

We have four main points, which are historical. The first is the opening to private investments for production. Previously, this figure existed, but now it would be in the law, before it was under the decree. The second point is energy efficiency, and a fund financed by the World Bank and the IDB was created for this. This is used to carry out energy saving campaigns and replace inefficient appliances, including air conditioners. At the same time, we will promote responsible consumption. The third point of the law is the forgiveness of interest to those who have debts in the electricity sector so that they can pay the principal. The fourth point is the possibility of self-production and self-sufficiency of the business sector.

Campo Amistad can help us with the electricity generation of Termogás Machala, but its tender has been declared invalid. Has anyone thought about promoting a new one?

The report issued by Petroecuador on Campo Amistad to declare it invalid indicates that the sole bidder did not have the technical and economic capacity for the award. Termogás Machala is a support, but it’s not like we will have more blackouts because Campo Amistad is not there. Another tender must be conducted that has all the conditions, that has economic, financial and banking parameters, so that the process could be attractive for more bidders, and at the same time be concluded under the most favorable conditions.

But then, is this tender urgent or not and do they perhaps have an appointment?

It is urgent to prepare the competition, of course. We will announce the date as soon as possible.

ITT is another delicate issue that is in your hands. On the one hand, force majeure has been declared due to protests by the Waorani community and the closure of the block is expected this new year. How will these issues be resolved?

It is the first time in history that an oil field has to be removed. The scheme for this cannot be taken lightly in terms of timing without a technical criterion for disassembly. Petroecuador has already collected some data. There are several points to consider: minimization of the economic impact regarding the production of ITT; On the other hand, the removal of infrastructure is a high cost that the state cannot bear, and on the other hand, the entry of machines can create a serious impact on the environment. We work out these criteria in an articulated manner, but we have to give them to the Court, because it cannot have such a fixed deadline. You need to understand the technical needs and even those of the communities themselves.

In your opinion, should the issue of ITT production continue even after a year?

This is what we are finishing articulating and we will introduce it to journalists and citizens in the coming days.

Now the communities are paralyzed again due to various demands… What is happening?

As for the issue of declaring force majeure in Ishping, it is a complex issue. We are at the crisis table to jointly respond to needs. We are trying to issue criteria for the presence of the state in these communities. Petroecuador, Ministry of Energy, are present. But we cannot make ourselves vulnerable to demands that cannot be achieved by force. We maintain mechanisms for establishing conversation channels.