BRIEFS. energy

Reservoirs drained in early months of 2008

Gabriel Rodríguez/ La Prensa

No Rain: There was no precipitation in Bayano yesterday and the lake level fell from 53.76 meters to 53.64 meters above sea level. 1029422

The Centro Nacional de Despacho (CND), which oversees the operation and management of the energy market, increased the delivery of hyrdroelectric energy during the first months of the year. That contributed significantly to decreasing the level of the country's reservoirs when water resources ought to have been conserved, said the manager of AES Panamá, Javier Giorgio. AES is the largest electricity generation company in Panama.

CND reports indicate that 70 percent of the energy dispatched in January was generated by hydroelectric plants.

The manager of Empresa de Transmisión Eléctrica Eléctrica, Isaac Castillo, said the CND uses whatever energy is available at the moment and that it's possible that there were various thermal generators undergoing repairs in January.

After the recent rain, Lago Fortuna rose almost two meters to 1,013 meters above sea level, preventing the need to ration electricity in the upcoming days.