Unión Eléctrica (UNE) of Cuba reported power outages amounting to a 968 MW deficit on Friday, with expectations of improvement by Saturday. According to their Facebook update, the generation capacity deficit affected the entire 24-hour period, and service had not been restored as of early Saturday morning. The peak outage occurred at 8:30 PM.
As of 7:00 AM on Saturday, the national electrical system (SEN) had an availability of 2180 MW and a demand of 2450 MW, resulting in 294 MW being affected. The forecast for midday predicted a maximum outage of 800 MW. During peak hours, the system is expected to have an availability of 2660 MW and a maximum demand of 3100 MW, leading to a 440 MW deficit, with an anticipated outage of 510 MW, lower than in the morning.
At the time of reporting, four units from three thermoelectric plants were out of service due to malfunctions, including Unit 1 of the Felton plant, which UNE experts believe could resume operations on Saturday. Additionally, two units from the CTE Santa Cruz and Nuevitas were undergoing maintenance.
Moreover, 41 distributed generation plants were offline due to a lack of fuel, and 364 MW were affected by limitations in thermal generation. The Felton plant went offline on Thursday due to a boiler rupture, and technicians were working to restart it by Saturday. The plan was to have the boiler operational by 4:00 AM on Friday, with adequate temperature for the technicians' work.
Amid the current crisis, the malfunction at the Holguín thermoelectric plant had a significant impact on electricity distribution, particularly in the eastern region. The incident caused a frequency trip affecting line 5545, which supplies circuits in the municipality of Bartolomé Masó and the La Curva Substation in Granma.
The Electric Company of that province warned of outages "outside the scheduled rotation planned by the blocks." The circuits would experience six-hour power outages, followed by three hours of service, depending on the country's electrical generation availability.
On Thursday, power outages due to generation capacity deficits lasted the entire 24 hours, and by early the next morning, service had still not been restored. For Friday, UNE announced nearly 1,000 MW of cuts during peak hours.
The malfunction occurred in Unit 1 of the installation due to a "puncture" in the tubes of the left sidewall, just over three meters high. "Identifying damaged stubs (tubes) and performing replacement or welding operations is crucial. If everything goes well, the unit could restart operations on Saturday," said UNE.
Understanding the Power Outages in Cuba
The following questions and answers provide further insight into the recent power outages in Cuba, as reported by Unión Eléctrica (UNE).
What caused the recent power outages in Cuba?
The recent power outages were caused by a generation capacity deficit, compounded by malfunctions in several thermoelectric plants and a lack of fuel for distributed generation plants.
Which thermoelectric plants are currently out of service?
Four units from three thermoelectric plants are currently out of service due to malfunctions. This includes Unit 1 of the Felton plant, which may resume operations soon.
How is the power outage schedule being managed?
The power outage schedule is being managed with rotations planned by the blocks. However, recent outages have occurred outside of the scheduled rotations due to unexpected issues.