Spanish
Cuba anticipates widespread blackouts across the country this Monday, cuts that at the time of maximum demand will simultaneously leave nearly 54% of the island without power, reported the state-owned company Unión Eléctrica (UNE).
The energy crisis on the island, which has worsened over the past year, is currently at one of its worst moments, with deficit rates above 50%, blackouts of more than 20 hours a day in a large part of the country, and last Wednesday's national blackout, the fifth in less than a year.
The UNE, attached to the Ministry of Energy and Mines, estimated that at the time of maximum demand for this day, the maximum electrical generation capacity will be 1,710 megawatts (MW) for a demand of 3,550 MW.
This represents a deficit (the difference between supply and demand) of 1,840 MW and an estimated impact (what is actually disconnected to avoid disorderly blackouts) of 1,910 MW. It is common for the actual values to exceed the official forecast.
Currently, seven of the 20 thermoelectric production units are out of service due to breakdowns or maintenance. In addition, 35 distributed generation plants (engines) are not working due to lack of fuel (diesel and fuel oil).
Breakdowns and lack of foreign currency
Cuban thermoelectric plants are mostly obsolete, after decades of exploitation and a chronic deficit of investment and maintenance, while there are electric generation engines out of service due to the country's lack of foreign currency to import fuel.
Independent experts point out that the energy crisis is due to chronic underfunding of this sector, completely in the hands of the Cuban state since the triumph of the revolution in 1959.
The Cuban government, for its part, highlights the impact of US sanctions on this industry and accuses it of "energy asphyxiation".
Various independent calculations agree in estimating that the Cuban government would need between 8,000 and 10,000 million dollars to revive the electrical system, an amount that Havana does not have.
Power outages are a heavy burden on the national economy, which contracted by 1.1% in 2024 and has accumulated a 11% drop in the last five years, according to official data. The ECLAC also predicts that its gross domestic product (GDP) will be negative this year.
The cuts also fuel social discontent in Cuba and have been linked to the main protests that have occurred in the country in recent years, such as those in July 2021. This Saturday, dozens of people took to the streets in Gibara (east).
