• Submitted by: manso
• International
• 06 / 14 / 2011

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By: Yllen Riquelme 00:13Caracas, Jun 14 (Prensa Latina) The Venezuelan government confirmed the incorporation of about 9,171 megawatts to the national grid in 2011-2012, to take on the increase in demand.

According to Electric Power Minister Ali Rodriguez, the increase will correspond to the installation of more capacities and to the recovery of those out of order.

He said in a press conference that almost 6,000 MW will be added to the system through the construction of plants and other works, while the rest will be used in rehabilitation of the system.

In the last few days, the electric power issue has been in the center of the attention in the wake of power faults in several states, mainly in Zulia.

Speaking about the situation, Rodriguez explained that with the increase in the demand it is necessary to combine the introduction of features with power saving.

He said that a better distribution of income and the economic and population growth increased the consumption of 10,800 MW in 1999 (when Hugo Chavez took office) to 17 000 in 2011, and there is even the potential to exceed 18,000, an unsustainable fact.