Jose Julio Neira, Secretary General of Public Administration, clarified on the social network X that the official notice issued by the Ministry of Energy and Environment’s Undersecretariat for Distribution contained errors regarding the terms of the measure; he also announced the immediate dismissal of the official responsible.
The official specified that high-voltage industrial clients (group AV1) may resume their usual consumption from the public grid starting at midnight on Thursday, October 15, while medium-voltage users (AV2) must maintain the planned disconnection until midnight on Friday, the 16th.
This correction ruled out the continuous seven-day disconnection that distributors had communicated to some 9,000 companies, but confirmed that electricity restrictions will continue amidst the sector’s crisis.
Despite the reversal of the industrial blackout extension, business associations remain concerned about the risk of halted operations, loss of raw materials, difficulties in paying wages, and potential failure to meet commercial commitments.
The Executive branch cites unfavorable conditions at major hydroelectric plants—where basins are operating at minimum flow rates due to a lack of rainfall—and notes that thermal power generation is insufficient to meet demand.
President Daniel Noboa had promised there would be no power cuts for households; however, the current situation is generating uncertainty, as the country endured outages of up to 14 hours a day in 2024 under similar circumstances.
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