While the eastern zone of Cuba remains switched off as a preventive measure against the effects of the Hurricane Melissathe rest of the island has not been very illuminated either.
According to Lázaro Guerra Hernández, Director of Electricity of the Ministry of Energy and Mines (Minen), central and western Cuba suffered “high electrical damage” this Tuesday due to insufficient available generation capacity, a situation that will continue today.
The manager explained in a television intervention that although the disconnection of the eastern provinces meant a decrease in electricity demand, the loss of availability was greater when the Renté, Felton thermoelectric plants and the Moa engines were disconnected.
Added to this was the already low generation capacity in the rest of the country, due to the units already stopped due to breakdowns and maintenance and the departure of others, such as the unit 3 of Santa Cruz del Norte.
Shortly before 8:00 PM yesterday the impact was 2031 MW, as reported the Electrical Union (UNE), which today He did not give a forecast for the electricity deficit, but confirmed that it will also be “high.”
In addition, he announced that he foresees the entry of units 3 of Cienfuegos and Santa Cruz, and 6 of Nuevitas, which in theory should improve the low electricity availability. Guerra Hernández said that the first two should be incorporated before the night peak and the other, later.
In its brief publication, the UNE does not refer to possible effects due to lack of fuel and lubricants in distributed generation, something that has been hitting the island’s electrical system throughout 2025.
Nor did he mention the contribution of the new solar parks or the state of those located in the eastern zone, which had to be disconnected and protected before the passage of Melissa.
On the other hand, he did dedicate other publications to the brigades that must work on electrical recovery in the provinces affected by the hurricane, a process that is presumed long and complex.
Regarding them, Guerra Hernández assured that they were ready in territories in the center of the island, waiting to leave for the eastern area once the attacks of the cyclone end.
As for the damage to the electrical infrastructure, he said it was still early to know its magnitude, although – based on previous events and taking into account the strength of Melissa – these should be significant and recovery could take a long time.
