Back in January, we had an intense heatwave. For a short while Buenos Aires and its surrounding provinces became the hottest part of the world. Air conditioners got cranked up, power consumption escalated and, inevitably, the grid fell short. For one sweltering week, entire neighbourhoods experienced constant outages. To some extent, power cuts are commonplace during summer in Argentina, but this year the problem was more acute.
Even though – compared to other countries – the price we pay for electricity is still relatively low, rates have been rising in spurts. Every time I pay an electricity bill I mutter to myself: ‘Damn you, scammers.’ It seems crazy to be paying so much for a service that is a basic need.
