The partial disconnection of the National Electrical System (SEN) of Cuba that occurred this Thursday could be resolved in a few hours. However, in practice this meant nothing for millions of Cubans, who remained mired in blackouts much longer than the temporary fall.
The partial disconnection occurred at 12:45 PM due to an “oscillation of parameters” and meant the loss of 285 MW, a figure much lower than the availability of generation and – even more so – the demand for electricity on the island at that time.
By 4:35 in the afternoon, the damage caused by that fall had been resolved, according to the Electrical Union (UNE). This means that these effects only lasted around four hours, a ridiculous amount of time when compared to the blackouts of 20 or more hours that many Cuban towns suffer.
The negative peak of the day arrived at 7:00 PM, more than three hours after the restoration of the SEN, when the effects escalated to 1840 MW, “higher than planned” due to the non-entry of units 3 of the Santa Cruz and Renté thermoelectric plants, according to the UNE.
However, neither of these two units are reported to be faulty today, from which it can be deduced that they have already been incorporated into the SEN. In fact, UNE itself—which had reported in the afternoon the departure of Renté 3— He reported at night on his networks about its incorporation, but had not done the same with Santa Cruz 3.
In this way, there are six thermal units outside the SEN due to breakdowns and maintenance, according to the official report, which sets the limitations of the plants in operation at 467 MW.
Friday blackouts
At 6:00 in the morning this Friday the availability was 1,610 MW, while the impact due to capacity deficit did not reach 1,000 MW. Nor should it be done at noon, according to UNE forecasts.
However, at night the panorama will be very complex again.
At that time, the entry of any of the currently disconnected blocks is not scheduled, nor will the 820 MW affected by the lack of fuel and lubricants in distributed generation be recovered. Meanwhile, demand will rise to 3,350 MW, if not more.
Consequently, the maximum expected impact in that time slot will be 1810 MW, above the 1610 MW that should be available, if no unforeseen events occur. For this reason, the blackouts, which will continue throughout the day, will once again be more acute at that time and leave most of the country in darkness.
