
CARACAS, Venezuela, Feb. 19 (UPI) -- City planners complain an electricity measure is unfair as 30 percent of the billboards in Venezuela go dark Friday as part of an energy plan, officials said.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez signed a formal electricity emergency last week as the country struggles with rolling blackouts.
Chavez said during a radio program that pervasive drought created "an emergency" in Venezuela, which relies on hydroelectricity for much of its energy needs.
Caracas is weighing a series of options to make up for the shortfall, including a deal with Colombia, thermal power plants and $6 million in investments in solar energy.
Consumers during the emergency face stiff penalties for heavy usage. Discounts are available for low-energy consumers.
Electricidad de Caracas, the government utility, are monitoring energy usage from heavy consumers in the industrial and commercial sector. Heavy consumers are expected to reduce power demands by 10 percent starting Friday and another 10 percent by next week to avoid power cuts, Venezuela's El Universal newspaper reports.
Victor Maldonado, the director of the Chamber of Commerce in Caracas, said the measure was impractical.
"The government has not talked to any sector to build public policies," he complained.
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Additional Energy Resources Stories | |
JUNEAU, Alaska, May 31 (UPI) --
A U.S. federal court in Alaska issued an injunction that would keep activists from Greenpeace from Shell operations planned for the state's coast.
|
MELBOURNE, Fla., May 31 (UPI) --
Harris Corp. is one of 22 companies contracted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to provide equipment and services for tactical communications.
|
Inventories of bank-owned foreclosures for sale vary increasingly by state as the latest local data suggests that lenders are beginning to release a long-awaited wave of more than one million backlogged foreclosures, primarily in states where a court...
|
Behind the impulse in Europe to form eurobonds or collectively insure bank deposits is the fear that Spain will require a very expensive fix.
|
| Stories | Photos | People | Comments |
View Caption