(Arturo Uslar Pietri: There are no black-outs here,just darkness for you and brightness for other countries)
July 8th. 2010. Ali Rodriguez Araque, Minister for Electricity: We have overcome the Electric Crisis
Aug. 29 2010. Vice-President Elias Jaua: The Electric Crisis has been overcome.
Sep. 2nd. 2010. President Hugo Chavez : The revolution has increased electricity production in Zulia by 1000%
Sep. 3d. 2010 Venezuelan Embassy in the US: Targets for Electric Production have been exceeded.
Jan 14th. 2011. Hugo Chavez, Chief loud mouth: The Electric Crisis has been overcome (They even made a pamphlet out of it)
Feb 17th. 2011: Minister Rodriguez Araque: In the coming years there will be full supply (of electricity) and excess capacity.
March 30th. 2011. Reuters: Widespread power outages return to plague Venezuela.
April 1st. 2011. Ali Rodriguez Araque: We will implement a plan to avoid strict rationing.
April 5th. 2011: Minister for Electricity Rodriguez Araque: We are not rationing electricity.
April 6th. Deputy Andrade of PSUV: There is no electric crisis in Venezuela
April 7th. 2011. Minister for Electricity Rodriguez Araque: There will be rationing to stabilize the electric network.
April 8th.: El Universal: Blackout compromised 62% of electricity demand.
April 9th. President Chavez: Fire caused blackout, but I don’t discard the possibility of sabotage.
Even the excuse was predictable…
Updates:
I will be updating this post as time goes on.
April 25th: Minister for Electricity Ali Rodriguez: By 2012 the whole electric system will have been recovered. Not clear if sabotage will change his mind as he claims there was sabotage in two generators. I wonder who provides security at the plant?
May 9th. 50 blackouts daily in Venezuela.
May 12th. Head of Load Department of the Ministry Of Electricity: By 2012 you will be able to trust Venezuela’s electric system.
May 12th. Ali Rodriguez Minister for Electricity (Nationwide TV): Prophets of doom are once again announcing an electric collapse.
May 13th. Venezuela’s largest refinery complex hit by power outages.
May 17th. It has been six months since the official website of the electric sector publishes any statistics. Could it be because it would show how bad things are?
May18th. Minister of Electricity: By December electricity generation will be increased by 2,568 MW thanks to new distributed power systems and the overhaul of some units that are out of service.
May 26th. An “unexpected” interruption leaves three states without power. Carabobo, Falcon and Lara lost power tonight due to a problem in Planta Centro.
May 27th. Electric service restored in four States.
May 28th. Corpoelec applies rationing to compensate for electricity deficit.
May 30th. “Blackouts will be selective“. A professor of Electrical Engineer explains while it will be at the earliest in 2014 when the problems may be fixed in Venezuela’s electrical system.
June 1st: El Nacional Page C-7: Corpoelec had to shut down power in nineteen states “because it needed to”. This was stated by Igor Gavidia, Director of the National Center for Delivery of the Ministry for Electrical Energy. He gave a list of all of the “rationings”. (His words)
June 10th. Five hour blackout in Zulia State which affects four other states.
June 11th. Minister of Electricity: Electric service will be progressively restored by Sunday in Zulia State.
June 12th. The Government will announce emergency measures on electricity on Monday, June 13th.
June 12th. Minister Rodriguez Araque has censored all information about electricity in the country since November 2010
June 13th. Penalties are imposed on those that can not reduce consumption by at least 10%, the Government people’s consumption for the problems, not their incapacity.
June 27th. Electric system should stabilize by the end of 2011.
June 28th. CAF lends Venezuela US$ 320 million for overhaul of six turbines in Guri dam.
Sep. 5th. Chavez: We neglected the electric area
The Devil's Excrement 