Rationing: nightmare of a Venezuela desperate to recover its power grid

Published: 2026-05-09 17:22:06 ET GE

Published on 05/09/2026 at 05:22 pm EDT

By Henry Chirinos

Maracaibo (Venezuela), May 9 (EFE).- Just as Venezuela attempts to lure foreign investment with the promise of a new economic era to recover key sectors, electricity rationing offers no respite in regions like Zulia (bordering Colombia in the northwest) increasing skepticism about the possibility of overcoming years of infrastructure deterioration.

Power outages lasting several hours and with no official schedule, according to those affected, returned in February after an apparent stabilization in 2025 of the electricity crisis the country has suffered for more than 15 years.

It was not until March 22 that interim president Delcy Rodríguez announced an "energy saving plan" to deal with a solar phenomenon that, she anticipated, would cause a temperature increase across the country for 45 days. That period ended on Wednesday.

Amid user complaints, the Sectoral Vice Presidency of Public Works and Services reported that as of May 7, the country reached "a milestone in electricity demand," hitting 15,570 megawatts, a figure it described as "the highest in the last nine years."

In light of the increased consumption, which it attributed to "high temperatures" and "economic growth," the Government announced it is executing stabilization and protection "maneuvers" on the electrical system to guarantee service balance.

Hours without power

However, the daily concern for users focuses on the unscheduled service cuts, which can extend up to seven hours in cities like Maracaibo (the capital of Zulia) or Mérida.

Both cities, located in the west of the country, belong to the area most punished by electrical failures over the last two decades, as they are the last link in the grid mainly fed by the Guri dam, located in the Venezuelan southwest, at the opposite end of the national territory.

"It's a surprise, a Russian roulette what we're experiencing with the electrical system when the power goes out," Gustavo Aguilar, 68, a resident of the Maracaibo community of Zapara, told EFE about the unexpected cuts.

Aguilar complains that "there is no official information (...) about why this is happening," and declares himself "a little skeptical" about the negotiations announced by the Government with Siemens and General Electric to resolve the electrical crisis in Zulia.

However, he qualifies: "If there are announcements of improvements, they are obviously welcome."

Other areas, such as Caracas, the country's capital and traditionally exempt from prolonged blackouts, suffer almost daily voltage fluctuations.

Paralysis

For other sectors, the effects of the electricity crisis translate into losses. In 2022, for example, 60% of businesses had closed in Zulia, while in 2025, when the system seemed stabilized, the figure dropped to 40%, according to the Maracaibo Chamber of Commerce.

The president of this commerce association, Dino Cafoncelli, explained to EFE that although medium and large companies have managed to protect themselves through "alternative systems," this option is unattainable for small businesses.

In fact, in the guild's latest survey, more than 90% of those consulted cite the electricity crisis as their main concern.

"We hope that these companies that are arriving will, of course, bring fast and effective solutions for the region," Cafoncelli added.

For engineer Alejandro López, from the Technological Research Center at the private Rafael Belloso Chacín University in Maracaibo, the recovery of the electrical system requires the decentralization of the system, the reactivation of regional thermoelectric plants, and personnel training.

"We have to start by recovering the turbines of the Termozulia plants that were installed by Siemens and General Electric," López indicated, for whom the approach with these companies is "correct" for the recovery and reestablishment of the thermoelectric park in that oil-producing region.

In darkness

Details of the negotiations are unknown, nor is it clear if or when work will actually begin. The only certainty, paradoxically, is the uncertainty and exhaustion of a citizenry forced to carry out their daily tasks under the threat that an outage could occur at any moment.

Jennifer Andrade, 45, confesses that she prefers to cook "early," as there is no set time for rationing.

"Today," she recounted, "it went out at 6:00 (in the evening) and everyone was already done; they had just finished eating."

Without light, many set up on their entrances or sidewalks in front of their houses to wait, amidst stories and sweltering heat, for the service to return, though there are also numerous times they must resign themselves to sleeping in the dark.EFE