Cuba suffered another nationwide blackout on Friday after its National Electricity System experienced a “total disconnection”
The collapse followed severe generation shortages, with fuel constraints, breakdowns and maintenance keeping generating units offline and leaving demand far above available supply
Authorities have begun restoring the grid in stages, while Cuban officials continue to blame US sanctions and restrictions for worsening the wider energy crisis
Cuba Faces Fresh Nationwide Blackout After Total Grid Collapse, Millions Lose Power
Cuba suffered another nationwide blackout on Friday after its National Electricity System collapsed, leaving the island without power as authorities began efforts to restore the grid.
Summary
Cuba’s Ministry of Energy and Mines said the National Electricity System suffered a “total disconnection” and that recovery protocols had been activated. State-run Unión Eléctrica also reported the system failure and began issuing updates on the restoration process.
Grid Collapses Again
The latest blackout followed a failure in Cuba’s transmission network. According to the Ministry of Energy and Mines, the disruption began with a fault affecting the 220-kilovolt Matanzas-Cienfuegos transmission line, triggering the collapse of the national system.
Authorities then began reconnecting generation units and restoring sections of the grid as part of the recovery process.
The collapse came after several days of severe strain on Cuba’s electricity system. In its Thursday update, Unión Eléctrica forecast a substantial generation deficit during the evening peak, with available generation far below expected demand.
Power Shortage Deepens
Unión Eléctrica said the maximum generation deficit on Wednesday reached 2,166 megawatts. For the evening peak on Thursday, it forecast available generation of 1,110 MW against expected demand of around 3,200 MW, leaving a projected shortfall of 2,120 MW.
The utility also reported that 106 distributed-generation plants were out of service because of a lack of fuel. Several thermal generating units were unavailable because of breakdowns or maintenance.
Solar generation provided some additional supply, but remained insufficient to close the gap between generation and demand.
Recovery Underway
Following the total grid collapse, authorities began restoring the system in stages.
The Ministry of Energy and Mines said recovery protocols had been activated, while Unión Eléctrica continued reporting on the gradual reconnection of generation and restoration of electricity supply.
The latest blackout follows a prolonged period of power shortages across Cuba, with the country’s electricity authorities repeatedly reporting generation deficits, fuel shortages and generating units out of service.
Havana Blames US Restrictions
Cuban officials have also linked the wider energy crisis to US sanctions and restrictions on fuel supplies.
Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez has repeatedly blamed US pressure for worsening Cuba’s access to fuel and other supplies, while President Miguel Díaz-Canel has similarly described the restrictions as an intensified US “energy blockade”. Their official accounts have made the case as part of Havana’s wider criticism of US policy towards Cuba.
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The latest grid collapse, however, is being dealt with first as an immediate electricity-system emergency, with authorities focused on restoring the National Electricity System after the total disconnection.
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