The Ministry of Energy and Mines of Ecuador announced that on Sunday, April 29, the interconnection with the Colombian electrical system was restored, after last Friday it was necessary to ration that service due to the critical energy situation that both countries faced due to the drought in its reservoirs, which increased as a consequence of the El Niño Phenomenon.
In a statement from the Government in the brother country, it was reported that Around 6 in the afternoon, the reconnection was carried out after the efforts made by the National Electricity Operator (Cenace) and the Ministry of Energy and Mines of Ecuador. in order to improve the safety of your electrical system.
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Precisely, the head of the aforementioned portfolio in the neighboring nation, Roberto Luque, had mentioned on Friday that conversations were being held at a technical level between the operators of the national electrical systems of both countries to evaluate the restoration of service as soon as possible. .
Although Colombia had already suspended the export of electricity to Ecuador, due to the lack of surpluses and the prioritization of its generation to supply internal demand, the national authorities were forced to suspend it.
As Luque explained, Colombia cut off the interconnection because, even though the export of energy was already disabled, the electrical systems in the neighboring country continued to absorb it. through those high voltage lines.
“No one was passing electricity. Neither from Ecuador to Colombia nor from Colombia to Ecuador. It is more of an issue of signal stability or frequency, it is in our best interest to be connected,” said the senior official, who expressed the intention to resolve the situation amicably.
The energy crisis had manifested itself since Sunday, April 14, with electricity cuts for several hours a day, the hours of which varied depending on the area and sectors. Although the cuts in the country were suspended this Sunday, they will resume starting tomorrow, Monday.
The drought of the Mazar reservoir, the second largest in Ecuador, with a capacity of 410 million cubic meters of water, is the main cause of the crisis. Three hydroelectric plants operate in the Paute River basin, generating up to 1,757 megawatts, meeting approximately a third of the national electricity demand.
Andean Community Countriesincluding Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Chilehave laid the foundations for the creation of the Regional Andean Electric Market (Maer) and the Andean Short-Term Electricity Market (Maercp)with the purpose of facilitate energy exchange between nations. However, these projects are still in the implementation phase and face challenges that could impact trust and cooperation between the countries involved.
The electrical relationship between Colombia and Ecuador has been key to start regional dialogue on energy mattersallowing both nations, along with Peru, Bolivia and Chilework in the harmonization of regulations and the construction of the infrastructure necessary for energy transactions.
Despite the progress, experts such as the former director of the Energy and Gas Regulation Commission (Creg), Jose Fernando Pradathey point out that the market rules are not yet effectively appliedwhich represents an obstacle to the progress of these negotiations.
The energy exchange in this network reaches 9.6 gigawatt hours per daywhich is equivalent to a capacity of 450 megawatts and would cover up to 4.6% of national demand of the countries involved. These figures highlight the importance of energy cooperation in the region. However, the physical disconnection between countries could represent a significant setback for this common objective.
