On the last day of July, it became evident once again that the Cuban government could not fulfill its promise of a summer without power outages. In its daily report, the Unión Eléctrica (UNE) of Cuba announced that this Tuesday, service was disrupted due to a deficit in generation capacity for the entire 24-hour period.
The maximum disruption yesterday reached 753 MW at 9:00 p.m., a value higher than expected due to the unforeseen shutdown of Unit 5 at the Nuevitas thermoelectric plant. Although the service was restored at 4:52 a.m. today, disruptions began again at 6:49 a.m. due to a continued deficit in generation capacity.
The availability of the National Electric System (SEN) at 7:00 a.m. was 2,480 MW against a demand of 2,500 MW, resulting in 20 MW affected in the system. For the daytime hours, a forecasted outage of around 450 MW is expected.
Four units from four different thermoelectric plants are currently out of service due to malfunctions. These units are: Unit 1 of the Santa Cruz thermoelectric plant, Unit 5 of the Nuevitas plant, Unit 6 of the Rente plant, and Unit 2 of the Felton plant. No thermoelectric units are under maintenance at this time.
Thermal generation limitations amount to 428 MW. Additionally, 57 distributed generation plants are out of service due to fuel shortages, leading to a total of 381 MW affected. For peak hours, an availability of 2,480 MW and a maximum demand of 3,180 MW are estimated, resulting in a deficit of 700 MW. If current conditions persist, outages of around 770 MW are predicted during nighttime hours.
Lázaro Guerra Hernández, General Director of Electricity at the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MINEM), stated this Wednesday on Cuban Television that current weather conditions, which increase thermal sensation, lead to higher usage of refrigeration and air conditioning equipment, consequently boosting energy demand throughout the day. He indicated that this consumption spike is challenging to manage due to the lack of fuel for distributed generation and the unavailability of several generating units that are currently out of service. Guerra Hernández assured that these units are expected to be operational between tomorrow and the day after.
In the comments section of the UNE's written report, numerous netizens expressed frustration or mockery over a situation that seems never-ending. "If they were paid for unfulfilled promises, Cuba would be Dubai," asserted one user. "I think it's a real waste of time for those two comrades to give the SEN report! They never have anything worthwhile... It's always bad news, and for that, we don't need more because we already know... This is a never-ending story!” pointed out another.
"Summer with electricity only for the capital and privileged circuits. The rest, save yourselves however you can. Blackouts knock on our doors thanks to the inefficiency and poor management of our leaders who are either blind to reality or choose to ignore it," commented a third user. Another noted that the Rente and Felton plants never seem to contribute to the SEN, calling it "the tale of the good pipe."
"The poor things, they're so worried about what's happening in Venezuela, as if there are no problems here, as if everything is going so well..." another commenter remarked sarcastically.
Understanding Cuba's Power Outage Crisis
To provide better insight into Cuba's ongoing power outage issues, here are some frequently asked questions and their answers:
What caused the recent power outages in Cuba?
The recent power outages were caused by a deficit in generation capacity, exacerbated by the unforeseen shutdown of multiple thermoelectric plant units and fuel shortages affecting distributed generation plants.
How is the Cuban government addressing the power outage issue?
The Cuban government is attempting to manage the situation by restoring out-of-service generating units and addressing the fuel shortage. However, the effectiveness of these measures remains to be seen.