Not counting the departure of the Ernesto Guevara thermoelectric plant, the UNE already predicted that at least 63% of Cuba would be in blackout.
LIMA, Peru – With the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant (CTE) out of service and eight other generation units paralyzed in Cuba, blackouts continue to worsen with more than 12 hours of consecutive interruption even in the capital.
As reported by the Electrical Union on the Island this morning, unit 2 of the Ernesto Guevara De La Serna CTE went offline “due to a failure in the turbine regulation system.”
The state electricity company acknowledged that last Friday the 24-hour service was affected and the maximum impact due to a deficit in generation capacity was 1,916 megawatts (MW) at 6:20 p.m.
The situation for this Sunday shows no signs of improvement, according to the conservative part offered by UNE. The National Electric System (SEN) once again faces a critical generation deficit that will cause prolonged and simultaneous outages in more than half of the country.
According to official information, for the hours of greatest demand—afternoon and night—an availability of only 1,160 MW is expected, compared to an estimated demand of 3,040 MW, which implies a deficit of 1,880 MW. Consequently, the UNE estimates an impact of up to 1,910 MW, which is equivalent to simultaneous blackouts in at least 63% of the national territory.
It should be noted that the forecast did not consider the departure of the SEN from unit 2 of the CTE Ernesto Guevara De La Serna.
The report also indicates, eight thermoelectric units They remain out of service due to breakdowns and maintenance. The damaged plants are unit 5 of the CTE Mariel, unit 5 of Nuevitas, unit 2 of the CTE Felton and units 3 and 6 of the CTE Antonio Maceo. In turn, unit 3 of the Santa Cruz CTE, unit 4 of the Carlos Manuel de Céspedes CTE in Cienfuegos and the Antonio Guiteras CTE are stopped for repairs.
Added to this is the paralysis of dozens of distributed generation plants due to lack of fuel, as well as the unavailability of electric motors due to a lack of diesel and lubricants.
The Antonio Guiteras CTE, the main unitary generation block in Cuba, left the SEN this Thursday to carry out corrective work for breakdowns associated with overconsumption of water, according to the provincial newspaper of Matanzas, Giron.
According to that official medium, the immediate objective of the shutdown is to reduce water consumption by correcting a fault in the boiler superheater and other existing losses. “Other actions will also be carried out, such as washing the CAR (regenerative air heater) and eliminating defects that will allow us to reach March with better indicators,” stated Doctor of Science Román Pérez Castañeda, technical director of the plant.
According to the manager himself, the stoppage should last between 72 and 96 hours. After maintenance, the unit – which at the time of the announcement was operating at around 180 MW – must increase its load to a range of 220 to 240 MW, according to Giron.
