The Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant, the largest unitary block in the country, urgently left the National Electroenergy System this Thursday to correct breakdowns, while the generation deficit maintains sustained effects and a critical outlook for peak hours.
The stoppage of the Matanzas plant, scheduled between 72 and 96 hours, seeks to reduce the overconsumption of water associated with failures in the boiler superheater and other technical losses, according to the newspaper Giron in Facebook.
“The main objective is to reduce water consumption, eliminating the breakdown 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,” explained Román Pérez Castañeda, technical director of the facility.
After maintenance, the unit must increase its load from 180 MW to an estimated range of 220 to 240 MW, according to the manager.
The National Electroenergy System closed on Wednesday with 24-hour disruptions and a maximum deficit of 1,832 MW in the afternoon. Although the service was restored in the early morning, the interruptions resumed hours later due to lack of generation capacity, according to the official report.
At 6:00 a.m. this Thursday, SEN availability was 1,350 MW compared to a demand of 1,870 MW, with 550 MW affected. By midday, the impact is expected to increase to 1,050 MW.
The system also faces multiple outages due to breakdowns and maintenance at plants in Mariel, Santa Cruz, Nuevitas, Felton, Cienfuegos and Antonio Maceo, along with 420 MW out of service due to thermal limitations.
Yesterday, the solar parks contributed 1929 MWh, with a maximum instantaneous power of 284 MW during midday hours. Although this volume partially alleviates demand during the hours of greatest solar radiation, its impact is limited compared to the deficit levels recorded in thermal generation, which far exceed 400 MW out of service due to breakdowns and maintenance.
The Electrical Union reported that 49 solar parks are already in operation throughout the country, as part of the diversification program of the energy matrix.
However, specialists recognize that this type of generation depends on weather conditions and does not cover nighttime consumption peaks, which forces thermoelectric plants, currently affected by prolonged outages and technical restrictions, to be maintained as the backbone of the system.
For peak hours, the gradual entry of several thermal units and floating generation is estimated. With this scenario, the authorities predict an availability of 1,385 MW in the face of a maximum demand of 3,150 MW, which could translate into an impact of close to 1,795 MW.
