Venezuela begins electricity rationing plan for next 40 days

Venezuela's 19 of 23 states began a new electricity rationing plan on Monday to reduce the consumption of water being used in the country's main power plant Guri Dam, according to the Ministry of Electrical Energy.

The Administration Plan for Electrical Use (PAC), announced on April 21, will see four hours of power cuts a day, with the time depending on the state administration, Minister of Electrical Energy Luis Motta Dominguez said.

The states of Amazonas and Delta Amacuro are not affected by the cuts as they already have a low consumption of energy, while the states of Vargas and Nueva Esparta as well as the Capital District are an exemption.

Hospitals, airports and security facilities will also not be affected.

The PAC will last for 40 days and will try to reduce the rate of activity at Guri, which has been sorely hit by droughts due to the El Nino.

"The PAC will help us conserve the water in Guri until the third week of May," said the ministry, which also predicted that the rainy season will begin next month.

Besides the PAC, the government has also announced other measures to reduce energy consumption, including having Fridays off in all state workplaces except bank and media. Shopping centers, factories and private shops must use their own generators for nine hours a day.

Measures must be taken to preserve the water at Guri, where the water level is low due to a severe drought caused by the El Nino climate phenomenon, Motta Dominguez has said. Guri supplies 70 percent of the country's electricity. Endit