Blackouts in Cape Verde dropped 53% in 2022 to 51 hours without electricity

The time of electricity supply interruptions in Cape Verde fell 53% from 2021 to 2022, to 51.2 hours of blackout, with the island of Brava still the biggest problem, according to data from state-owned group Electra.

According to data compiled today by Lusa from the 2022 report and accounts of Electra, the group responsible for the production and distribution of electricity in Cape Verde, through 14 thermal power plants, two solar parks, and a wind farm, last year there were a total of 104 interruptions in this supply, which lasted for 3,071 minutes (51.2 hours).

In 2021, Electra identified 158 interruptions in electricity supply nationwide, which lasted for 6,592 minutes (practically 110 hours).

However, the situation, as in the previous year, affected 2022 mainly the island of Brava, with about 5,000 inhabitants, despite the decrease from 58 to 29 interruptions, which lasted for 4,197 minutes (70 hours) and dropped this year to 1,611 (26.85 hours).

“However, there were major improvements at the Brava production center when comparing 2022 to 2021,” reads Electra’s report.

The Cape Verdean capital, the city of Praia, meanwhile, totaled 12 outages, more than the previous year, for a total of 339 minutes (5.65 hours), more than half the ‘blackout’ time seen in 2021, which was, in seven outages, 145 minutes (2.42 hours).

“The interruptions in the supply of electricity decreased in almost all electrical systems, except for the islands of São Vicente, Sal, and Santiago, having been registered [in these three] progress in ensuring continuity of service, with a substantial reduction in the number of blackouts,” adds the document of the national electricity company.

It also highlights the island of Santo Antão, which registered the lowest number of blackouts, with a total of three throughout the year.

According to Electra’s operational data for April, from January to December 2022, total electricity losses reached 114.5 GigaWatt-hours (GWh), equivalent to “24.4% of national production.

Overall electricity losses, technical and non-technical – mainly theft – nationwide, reached 112,432 GWh in 2021, representing 25.5% of production, still down from the 26.1% lost in 2020.

Luís Teixeira, Electra’s CEO, had already admitted earlier this year that energy theft and fraud jeopardized the sector’s sustainability, lamenting Justice’s delay.

“Electricity losses, especially losses related to theft and energy fraud, the issue of energy efficiency, are one of the main challenges the electricity sector faces today. We are talking about a problem jeopardizing the entire sustainability of the sector, but I would say more: of the country.

The company ended 2022 with 165,240 active electricity and 33,087 active water customers.

However, of Electra’s total customers, 16,927 are beneficiaries of the social electricity tariff, and 1,028 are the water social tariff beneficiaries.

Of the total number of active electricity customers, the company reports that 6,790 already have pre-paid meters.

With information from Lusa

News Cape Verde, English news Cape Verde, Cape Verdean Electra