VENEZUELA · ENERGY
Key Facts
- —What is happening Venezuela’s engineers’ association Aviem estimates that rebuilding the national power grid will cost between US$15 billion and US$40 billion and take five to ten years, in an estimate presented on Wednesday, 21 October.
- —Why it matters Outages of up to 16 hours a day in some regions have set off near-daily protests, and US-based General Electric holds one of the two main contracts to add generating capacity.
- —The numbers The range is US$15 billion to US$40 billion over five to ten years. The government says its deals with General Electric and Impsa will add about 7,400 megawatts, equal to 47% of the 15,726-megawatt peak demand Rodríguez cited in August.
- —Who is who Aviem, led by president Gelvis Sequera, is a professional engineers’ body. Acting president Delcy Rodríguez leads the government that announced the General Electric deal and the deal with Argentina’s Impsa.
- —What to watch Whether the government publishes the contract terms, accepts Aviem’s offer to act as an advisory body, and eases the outages in Zulia, Anzoátegui and Monagas states.
- —Power Index Venezuela ranks 13th of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 27.0 points (October 2026 edition).
- —What it means for you For US readers and investors, grid reliability bears on how fast Venezuela can raise oil output, and the terms of General Electric’s contract remain undisclosed.
Venezuela’s engineers’ association Aviem says rebuilding the national grid will cost US$15 billion to US$40 billion over five to ten years. It also criticises secret contracts with foreign firms, including US-based General Electric.
The Venezuela power grid needs US$15 billion to US$40 billion over five to ten years, Aviem estimated on Wednesday, 21 October. El Nacional, TalCual and Finanzas Digital carried the estimate, which Aviem released in a technical report and press note.
Aviem is the Venezuelan Association of Electrical, Mechanical and Related Engineering, a professional body tied to the Venezuelan Engineers’ College. It matters to US readers because US company General Electric holds one of two main contracts meant to rebuild the system.
What Aviem Estimates for the Venezuela Power Grid
Aviem’s president, Gelvis Sequera, put the cost of a full rehabilitation of the National Electric System at US$15 billion to US$40 billion. He said the work needs a master plan lasting five to ten years.
The top of that range is more than two and a half times the bottom, so the estimate is wide. President Delcy Rodríguez said in August that demand had recently peaked at 15,726 megawatts, the highest in eight years, Finanzas Digital reported.
Why the Grid Keeps Failing
Sequera says the crisis does not lie only in generation at the Guri hydroelectric dam or in the thermal power plants. He blames deterioration and heavy congestion in the transmission and transformation networks at 400, 230 and 115 kilovolts.
Zulia, Anzoátegui and Monagas suffer cuts of over eight hours a day despite sitting near power sources, the Aviem report says. El Nacional reports outages of up to 16 hours a day in several regions.
Aviem also points to low pay and the flight of skilled staff, which it says wiped out preventive maintenance, TalCual reported. It calls it incoherent to ask Zulia’s operators to generate their own thermal power while natural gas is scarce.
The news agency EFE reports that the government blames sanctions, the El Niño weather pattern and alleged sabotage. The opposition and experts cite corruption and a lack of maintenance.
The Contracts Behind the Estimate
Aviem criticised secrecy around contracts with foreign power companies, including confidentiality clauses that it says hide amounts and technical specifications. It says Venezuelan engineers are shut out of tender committees and audits, Finanzas Digital reported.
Sequera said serious investment does not work on discretionary hand-outs and needs transparent engineering, strict compliance rules and professional bodies in inspections. Lenders such as CAF, the Latin American development bank, and the Inter-American Development Bank demand such standards, he said.
Venezuela announced a General Electric deal on Monday, 15 June, Diario Libre reported. It targets 1,000 megawatts in 24 months and over 5,000 in four years.
A separate deal with Argentina’s Impsa is meant to finish the long-stalled Tocoma hydroelectric dam. On Friday, 9 October, Rodríguez said the two agreements will add about 7,400 megawatts, EFE reported.
That equals about 47% of the 15,726-megawatt peak that Rodríguez cited in August. It is a medium-term goal, not capacity already added.
What It Means for US Readers
General Electric, a US company, is one of the two foreign firms whose contracts Aviem wants opened to outside audit. The coverage gives no contract values, so US investors cannot size the exposure.
Diario Libre reported in June that experts say reviving Venezuela’s oil industry, the country’s main sector, requires a normal electricity supply. That ties the grid to any US interest in Venezuelan crude.
Background is in earlier reports on the General Electric grid deal, the power deficit and protests and the oil deal timetable. The Venezuela hub collects all coverage.
What Is Not Known
Aviem’s full report was not available, so the range rests on its press note, as carried by four outlets. Not known is what the range covers, how the money would be raised or what the contracts cost.
No government response to Aviem’s criticism appeared in the coverage found. The 16-hour outages are described as hitting some regions, not the whole country.
The 7,400 megawatts is a government announcement with a loose timetable, not an independent measurement. One outlet misnamed Impsa as a Russian firm, while EFE, TalCual and Diario Libre identify it as Argentine.
What Comes Next
Aviem offered to serve as an advisory body to oversee infrastructure projects, El Nacional reported. Whether the government accepts, or publishes the contract terms, is not yet known.
The next test is any official reply and the daily outage reports from Zulia, Anzoátegui and Monagas. An engineers’ estimate is not a budget and commits no one to spend.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much will it cost to fix Venezuela’s power grid?
Aviem estimates US$15 billion to US$40 billion over five to ten years. That is an engineers’ group’s estimate, not a government budget.
What is Aviem?
Aviem is the Venezuelan Association of Electrical, Mechanical and Related Engineering, a professional body tied to the Venezuelan Engineers’ College. Its president is Gelvis Sequera.
Why does Venezuela have blackouts?
Aviem blames congested transmission and transformation networks, years of underinvestment and missing maintenance. The government blames sanctions, El Niño and alleged sabotage, EFE reported.
Which companies are rebuilding the grid?
The government has signed deals with US-based General Electric and Argentina’s Impsa. Rodríguez says they will add about 7,400 megawatts in the medium term.
How long do the outages last?
El Nacional reports cuts of up to 16 hours a day in some regions. Aviem says Zulia, Anzoátegui and Monagas see more than eight hours a day.
Sources: El Nacional, 21 October; TalCual, Aviem estimate; Finanzas Digital, 21 October; EFE via Infobae, 21 October; Diario Libre, 16 June; Finanzas Digital, Impsa, 13 August (all accessed 22 October 2026).
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief