Electricity crisis hits Venezuelan oil exports

[phantom power]

The electricity crisis hitting Venezuela threatens to reduce further fuel exports, which recorded a year-on-year decrease of 16.3 percent in the second quarter of 2010, thus worsening the negative effects of the economic fall on the oil sector.

The Venezuelan government was forced this year to install dozens of thermal power plants to alleviate a stringent electricity rationing. Fueling these plants is costing several billion dollars in refined products that were intended for export.

The Central Bank of Venezuela acknowledged in a statement that there is "an increasing demand in the domestic market, related to the use of thermal power plants to generate electricity," The document added that Venezuela's economic downturn continued and amounted to 1.9 percent.

Reuters said that the government has met only 20 percent of the plan to install new thermoelectric plants to add 6,000 megawatts to the Venezuelan electricity grid, according to figures released by the Ministry of Electricity. Therefore, domestic consumption of fuel is expected to continue to soar this year.

http://english.eluniversal.com/2010/08/24/en_eco_esp_electricity-crisis-h_24A4374973.shtml

[pscot]

1. Failing Hydro

Extinct glaciers and deforestation have decreased the runoff and along with it their hydro generation. It feels like we're getting close to some failsafe point. Are stories like this becoming more and more common,or is it just that we're (I'm) obssessed?:tinfoilhat:

[Kringle]

2. diesel costs ten times as much as coal

there is a reason why some people are poor