two thirds of the island without electricity

“There was a disconnection of the National Electroenergy System from Camagüey (east) to Pinar del Río (west). All protocols for the reestablishment of the SEN have already been activated,” the UNE wrote on social networks.

The cause behind this massive blackout is located in the “unexpected departure” of the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant (in Matanzas, west) due to “a leak in the boiler.” This plant, one of the largest, is a frequent source of technical problems.

The Ministry of Energy and Mines (Minem) added for its part that the Felton thermoelectric power station (in Holguín, east), another of the largest in the country“keeps online” one of its two units, which theoretically should facilitate reconnection tasks.

Cuba suffers ato acute energy crisis from mid-2024, but in recent weeks it has worsened as a result of the US oil siege.

In the last year and a half, there have been five national blackouts and several partial ones.

This breakdown is not related to the UNE forecast for this Wednesday, which already anticipated major blackouts throughout the day, the largest of them covering 63% of the country.

The biggest blackout since 2022

This percentage is one of the largest recorded since Cuba began in 2022 to regularly disseminate energy statistics. The record blackout took place this Monday, with a rate close to 64%.

Los Daily outages when there are no breakdowns exceed 20 hours a day in large regions of the country and 3 p.m. in some parts of Havana.

This Wednesday, seven of the 16 operational thermoelectric production units are out of service due to breakdowns or maintenance. This energy source represents on average around 40% of the energy mix in Cuba.

These effects are not linked to the oil blockade (because they mostly use national oil), but to the conditions in which the obsolete thermoelectric plants operate, with decades of exploitation and a chronic investment deficit.

In recent years, the so-called distributed generation (diesel and fuel oil engines) was responsible for another 40% of the mix, which the Government has indicated has been basically stopped since January due to lack of fuel.

Independent experts indicate that the energy crisis in Cuba responds to chronic underfinancing of this sector. The Cuban Government highlights the impact of US sanctions and accuses Washington of “energy asphyxiation.”

Several independent calculations estimate that they would be accurate between 8,000 and 10,000 million dollars to clean up the electrical system.

The blackouts weigh on the economy, which has contracted more than 15% since 2020, according to official figures. Furthermore, they have been the trigger for the main protests in recent years.