Summer And Power Outages,how Well Prepared Are We?

[Gringoboy]

Does anyone have any idea why the system can't cope?
It's not as if this weather is unusual in December.
All we hear are dire apocalyptic warnings from De Vido and others.
I can't find any information regarding a watchdog or ombudsman to oversee the utility companies.
Perhaps, as usual it's simple lack of investment.

 

[Dublin2BuenosAires]

Underinvestment for years I guess. That and the inefficient use of individual A/C units and fans to cool millions of apartments.

Housing design is very poor here, even in newer buildings. Surely some sort of central a/c system could be installed to newer buildings to reduce the load at peak times. Is it not possible? Demand has increased beyond capcity, then you have villas illegally tapping into supply, also, lots of tiny little apartment blocks all on top of each other store heat, traditional high celiing apartments would be better, but supply caved into demand and bad design took over there too.

 

[dennisr]

Lack of investment and maintenance. Have read where Argentina has an installed capacity of about 32,000 MW. Utilization (what generators are available for service) is about 24,000 MW. About twenty five percent of generators are unavailable for service: no maintenance. SOS, different day.

 

[Rich One]

map of current power cuts....!!

 

[scotttswan]

anyone know if there's a website like this

http://www.gridwatch.templar.co.uk/

for argentina?

tn has data on their channel, wonder where they're getting it from?

 

[Gringoboy]

At home we've got two a/c units. One in the lad's bedroom and one in the living room.
Since he's now on holiday till March and spends a lot of time time in his room as most teens do, it's not unreasonable to expect it to be used most of the time in this heat.
Recently we also put ceiling fans in the living room, bedroom and study.
Since we pay electricity without subsidy, being on the wrong side of Libertador, I only put the a/c on when it gets really stifling and the fans seem to end up just wafting hot air around the place.
And it still feels like a luxury.....

 

[Rich One]

TV is warning people about the danger of buying all products for the Holidays, in advance, since in case of a power outage you would lose all your perishable foods....

No credit cards accepted in businesses w.out power cash only in Once.


Watch out for Golpistas that turn on all the units to boycott the Government.....

 

[Gringoboy]

According to Metba and also Metra, this hot weather will continue until after Christmas.
Time to defrost the fridge.

 

[Patrick 2014]

I have been living in Maracaibo, Vz the last few years so we have been dealing with shortages of basic staples and blackouts much of my time here. This is a post the Canadian embassy sends out prior to elections but we try and keep this current
>
> - Water - Have 6 litres per person / per day for 5 days. This water can be used for both drinking and sanitation purposes.
>
> - Food - Have enough non-perishable food on hand to feed everyone in your household for at least three days. Consider purchasing food that will not have to be cooked prior to consumption, as electricity and gas utilities may be offline for some time
>
> - Battery-powered or hand crank radio. Being able to listen to local broadcasts over the radio will help you to stay informed during an emergency situation.
> Flashlight and extra batteries (Ensure batteries are fully charged). As electrical utilities may be offline, this may be your only source of light.
>
> - Cash. As a disruption in electrical utilities may last for several days, if not weeks, after an emergency, banks may not be open and ATMs may not function. Having a sufficient amount of cash in your emergency kit will ensure that you have money to purchase additional supplies, if needed.
>
> - First Aid Kit
>
> - Propane for your BBQ. This can be used as an alternative means of preparing food in event of a power outage.
>
> - Prescription Medicines. Ensure that you have a sufficient supply of all your required medicines.
>
> - Fuel. Ensure that you have a full tank of fuel in your personal vehicle.
>
> - Saldo for Cell phones. Ensure that you have enough credit on your cell phones to make calls and send SMS msgs

 

[demokritos]

So how are people dealing with this? Anyone in capital have a backup generator, and if so, where do you put them (on the roof/balcony)? I saw that there are natural gas converters which you could either use garafas for, or possibly connect them directly to your gas hook-up. Someone told me this was illegal in Argentina (possibly due to heavy electricity subsidies), does anyone know about this?