AREQUIPA, Peru – Cuban authorities this weekend denounced the theft of dielectric oil from the country’s electrical transformers, a fact they blamed for part of the blackouts that affect the population on a daily basis.
A report from the state Caribbean Channel He highlighted the “considerable damage” caused by the theft of the lubricant, as well as the prolonged power outages that also resulted from the looting of the material.
According to official media, the theft of resources from infrastructures like these in Cuba leaves neighborhoods and communities without electricity.
“When they happen in substations and they steal oil from a transformer in a 4,000 KVA substation, that causes around 5,000 customers to be left without service. This has an economic and social connotation,” said Bernardo Espinosa, a pro-government journalist.
The theft of dielectric oil began with equipment in electrical substations, explained officials of the Cuban Electric Union (UNE), however, recently it has occurred in distribution transformers that are on columns and poles.
In this regard, UNE authoritiesThe Ministry of the Interior and the Attorney General’s Office said they are implementing “a set of actions” to eradicate this particular type of crime.
For example, at the Nazareno substation, in the municipality of San José de las Lajas, Mayabeque, several alleged criminals were caught red-handed and were forced to abandon several 20-litre tanks.
These were five individuals who were given provisional prison sentences after being accused of “sabotage”, a crime for which they could receive between seven and 15 years of imprisonment.
“The events that have been occurring in recent times have caused the reserve to decrease and we no longer have backup transformers,” UNE executives stressed.
Officials also warned of the dangers that these robberies pose for the thieves themselves, due to the high voltage (34,500 V) of the electrical substations where they are carried out.
Although they did not offer detailed figures on the number of robberies and economic lossesconfirmed that the provinces where most of these crimes are recorded are Mayabeque, Matanzas, Ciego de Ávila and Artemisa.
Currently, power cuts affect all provinces (although they are worse outside of Havana) and have reached up to 10 hours a day twice a day (around 20 hours in total).
Of maintenance and a relief that never comes
In May of this year, the Cuban ruler, Miguel Diaz-Canelsaid the country would experience “prolonged” power outages until June due to maintenance work on the energy system. This measure, according to authorities, seeks to reduce interruptions during the months of July and August, when consumption is highest.
“We are going to have extended maintenance until the month of June to minimize the inconvenience of blackouts in the summer, especially in the months of July and August,” said Díaz-Canel in the sixth episode of his podcast From the Presidency.
The president made it clear that the total absence of blackouts cannot be guaranteed: “We cannot commit to the absence of blackouts. Given the current conditions of the system, such a commitment is not possible now,” he said.
The blackouts, which affected more than a third of the country in June, further complicate the already tense energy situation in the country. Power cuts affect all provinces, reaching up to 10 hours a day, even in Havanawhere “scheduled” blackouts are implemented by neighborhood, lasting approximately eight hours.
These blackouts not only deteriorate the economic performance of Cubawhich has been mired in a serious crisis for years, but have also been the trigger for anti-government protests. The most notable ones occurred on July 11, 2021the largest in decades, and most recently on March 17 in Santiago de Cuba and other locations.
