Cuba: Another widespread power outage

"There has been a total disconnection of the national electro-energy system," Union electrica (UNE) announced on social media, specifying that it is looking for the "causes" of this new outage which affects the entire island of 9,6 million inhabitants.

Cuba's electrical grid regularly experiences general or partial outages due to aging infrastructure and fuel shortages.

Daily outages have intensified since Washington imposed an oil blockade in January that prevents fuel deliveries to run generators supplementing the electricity generation of thermal power plants.

The power cuts are incessant and now reach more than 30 hours at a time in Havana, and several days in the provinces.

Since January, Washington has only allowed one Russian oil tanker carrying 100.000 tons of oil to arrive on the island.

The country's electricity production relies mainly on seven aging thermal power plants, some of which have been in operation for over 40 years and suffer frequent breakdowns or have to be shut down for maintenance, as well as on a network of backup generators powered by imported diesel.

To reduce its dependence on oil and overcome the energy crisis, the Cuban government has focused on solar energy, with help from China in particular.

Between 2025 and early 2026, 56 photovoltaic solar parks were installed in the country, contributing over 1.000 MW, or 10% of its total electricity production—compared to 3% at the end of 2024. Authorities hope to reach 15% by the end of 2026.