A hotter than usual summer and lack of rain have caused water
levels at hydroelectric dams in most of the country to drop to a
third of their capacity. The levels are similar to those
registered in 2001, when rationing was imposed and blackouts
occurred. The government has said Brazil will not resort to
energy rationing because the country has thermal power plants
that can be activated. "The situation is worrisome because water
levels at the reservoirs remain very low," Claudio Sales,
president of the energy analysis group Instituto Ascende, said
Tuesday. "All we can do now is to wait for more rain."
Hydroelectric plants account for about 80 percent of the
electricity generated in Brazil. Mines and Energy Minister
Edison Lobao has repeatedly guaranteed that Brazil has
sufficient energy supplies amid growing fears that power
shortages could frustrate the government's 2013 GDP growth
estimates of 4 percent. "Brazil's electricity system is based on
several sources of energy," Lobao said in a signed article publi