No More Blackouts, ICE Says
Costa Rican president Oscar Arias is expected to make an important announcement with respect to the electrical retioning that has been felt all around the country for the last couple of weeks.

Last night the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) said it has suspended all blackouts.

The presidential announcement is expected to be made during the inauguration of the Cariblanco hydro-electric generating station located in San Miguel de Sarapiquí.

The reason for the end of the blackouts is mainly due to the rain of the last several days that has increase the reservoir water levels at the Cachí hydro-electric generating station, the main source of the lack of electrical power behind the rotating power blackouts.

The president of ICE, Pedro Pablo Quirós, confirmed the Cachí water levels after doing a fly over of the area.

The rationing began on April 19. That same evening the entire country went dark when a human error caused an explotion in one of the transformers at the Arenal generating station.

On April 26, the central government declared an emergency as the energy crisis affected the entrire country, giving ICE the flexibility to fast track its investment plans for the purchase of more thermal generators to meet the growing demand for electrical power.

ICE expects to have the purchase completed in the next two months and the installation six months later with the plants coming on line by summer of 2008.

In his speech to the Legislative Assemble on May 1st, president Arias told his audience that the power shortages are not a result of any accident or temporary problem, blaming past administrations for their lack of vision and investment in electrical power generation.

The president also blamed the unions for their "ideological delirium" and global warming.