MIAMI, United States. – The Electrical Union (UNE) of Cuba advertisement that the blackouts will simultaneously cover 43% of the national territory during peak hours (afternoon-night) this Wednesday. The impact on the electrical service even exceeds that of this Tuesday, which reached 42%.
“Yesterday the service was affected due to a deficit in generation capacity 24 hours a day, the service could not be restored in the early hours of today,” indicated the UNE in your daily part.
The state company indicated that the interruptions of the electrical service are due to the lack of fuel and breakdowns in the units of the operational terrestrial thermoelectric plants.
Specifically, for this Wednesday the UNE calculates a maximum electricity generation capacity of 2,005 megawatts (MW) and a demand of up to 3,380 MW, for a deficit of 1,375 MW.
However, the impact (what will actually be disconnected) will reach 1,445 MW during peak hours on October 16, the UNE specified.
In September, the Island recorded one of the highest electricity service impacts in three months (43%), although still below the 45% impact reported in February of this year.
Currently, power outages 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).
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 annoyance 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 governor made it clear that the total absence of blackouts cannot be guaranteed: “We cannot commit to there being no blackouts. Due to the current conditions of the system, that commitment is not possible now,” he declared.
The blackouts, which exceeded a third of their impact in June, further complicate the country’s already tense energy situation. Power outages 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 Cuba, which 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.
