Venezuelans are protesting daily blackouts across the country, three months after the US-backed government pledged to open the electricity sector to private investment. Residents have been marching in protest over power outages that worsened after Nicolás Maduro's arrest by US forces on January 3. Protests spread to Caracas, experiencing regular outages for the first time since 2019, with marchers blaming interim president Delcy Rodríguez.

Rodríguez has pledged to open the faltering electricity grid to the private sector, blaming natural phenomena like El Niño and earthquake damage to the Termo Carabobo plant. She called on citizens to ration electricity use. However, many citizens remain unconvinced, seeing little evidence of economic growth despite promises.

Venezuela’s power grid fell into disrepair during decades of corruption and mismanagement under Hugo Chávez and Maduro. The government has prioritized keeping lights on in the capital while neglecting other regions. Energy expert Luisa Palacios emphasizes that rebuilding requires not just restoring capacity but also establishing a credible regulatory framework with transparent market rules.