2024 Venezuelan blackouts

2024 Venezuelan blackouts
Part of Energy crisis in Venezuela
Date27 August 2024 – ongoing
Time(VET)
LocationVenezuela (nationwide)
TypePower outage
CauseEnergy crisis in Venezuela
OutcomeTotal and partial blackouts in all Venezuelan states

The 2024 Venezuelan blackouts were a series of interruptions to Venezuela's electrical service nationwide. The interruptions began on 27 August with a blackout that affected 12 states in the country at around 7:12 pm VET,[1][2] lasting until service restorations began at approximately 8:30 pm.[3] On 30 August, another blackout was recorded that left more than 20 states in the country without electricity, beginning at 4:50 am and leaving a significant portion of the nation without power for 12 hours,[4][5] with harder-hit areas not having power for 20 hours.[6] Outages were again reported in Caracas on 1 September,[7] continuing as of 3 September[8] and through 5 September.[9]

Highly dependent on the hydroelectric plant at Guri Dam,[4] Venezuela has experienced frequent electrical outages for at least a decade;[10][11] the administration of Nicolás Maduro often attributes blackouts to those who oppose him, while experts and the opposition attribute them to poor maintenance and a lack of infrastructure investment, official corruption and incompetence, and a loss of talented workers due to the Venezuelan refugee crisis.[4][5][12][13][11]

The Maduro administration attributed the blackouts to an alleged sabotage against the country's electrical system, without specifying the culprits and without giving more information. In the context of the political crisis following the 2024 Venezuelan presidential election, Diosdado Cabello—recently appointed by Maduro as Minister of the Interior, Justice and Peace—claimed[12][10] that the government already had information about alleged attacks and would enforce justice based on its findings.[14][13][11] On 4 September, without revealing any other information, Cabello said 11 people had been arrested.[15]

  1. ^ "El Gobierno de Venezuela acusa a la oposición de los apagones registrados este martes en el norte del país" [The Venezuelan government blames the opposition for the blackouts recorded this Tuesday in the north of the country]. Infobae (in Spanish). 28 August 2024. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
  2. ^ Méndez, Maryorin (27 August 2024). "Cabello se estrena como ministro de Interior, Justicia y Paz con apagón eléctrico que atribuye a un 'ataque terrorista'" [Cabello makes his debut as Minister of the Interior, Justice and Peace with a power outage that he attributes to a 'terrorist attack']. NTN24 (in Spanish). Retrieved 31 August 2024.
  3. ^ Soteldo, Eduardo (28 August 2024). "Apagón en varias ciudades de Venezuela #27Ago" [Blackout in several cities in Venezuela #27Aug]. El Impulso (in Spanish). Retrieved 31 August 2024.
  4. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference APGovernmentBlaming was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b Agelvis, Barbara (31 August 2024). "Electricity Returns Across Venezuela After Prolonged Outage". Barron's. Agence France-Press. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference ElDiario20Hours was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference InfobaeBlackoutsContinue was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Maturin3Sep was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference TalCual5Sep was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference VenezuelaExperiences was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ a b c "Apagón en Venezuela: casi todo el país amaneció sin luz y el gobierno de Maduro denuncia un 'sabotaje eléctrico'" [Blackout in Venezuela: almost the entire country woke up without electricity and the Maduro government denounces 'electrical sabotage']. La Nación (in Spanish). 30 August 2024. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
  12. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference ReutersPowerReturn was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ a b "Venezuela sufre un apagón nacional por un supuesto 'sabotaje eléctrico'" [Venezuela suffers a national blackout due to alleged 'electrical sabotage'] (in Spanish). EFE. 30 August 2024. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
  14. ^ Singer, Florantonia (30 August 2024). "El 80% de Venezuela se queda sin electricidad y el Gobierno denuncia un sabotaje" [80% of Venezuela is left without electricity and the Government denounces sabotage]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 31 August 2024.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference NTN24ElevenArrested was invoked but never defined (see the help page).