As Christmas nears, Ecuador’s homes get a break from power cuts but companies still face rationing

Associated Press

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — As Christmas approaches and people decorate their homes with lights, Ecuadoreans are getting some relief from the severe power cuts that have hounded the country this year with President Daniel Noboa saying there will be no power rationing for residential areas – for the time being. But some of the country’s largest mines, cement factories and steel mills will not be so lucky, facing continued power rationing in the last two weeks of December, according to energy officials. This discrepancy between residential and industrial areas has raised concerns in Ecuador’s business community over the future of the economy. Ecuadorian companies are losing an estimated $700 million each week from daily power cuts.