After a Tuesday marked by 1,135 MW of power outages in Cuba—exceeding the forecasted 940 MW—and a Wednesday promising 1,150 MW of disruptions, the Union Eléctrica (UNE) has revealed that Cubans should brace for a challenging week. Unfortunately, the situation is not expected to improve until Sunday.
Lázaro Guerra Hernández, the general director of Electricity for the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MINEM), noted on August 21 during his daily appearance on Cuban Television that the unit 4 of the Carlos Manuel de Céspedes thermoelectric plant in Cienfuegos and unit 1 of Felton in Holguín are not expected to be back online until Sunday. Their failure due to breakdowns has led to a significant increase in power outages.
By August 25, with the presumed reintegration of these thermoelectric units, which collectively add 320 MW, the situation is expected to improve. "The 4 in Cienfuegos and the 1 in Felton are undergoing boiler work, which requires a cooling process of four to five days to reintegrate into the system," Guerra Hernández explained.
“They have identified the problem, and now it's just a matter of working on it. We have personnel working around the clock,” added the director, who appears increasingly uncomfortable despite the support of journalist Bernardo Espinosa, who tries to make things easier for him.
Although the engineer mentioned that only three units are currently out of service—the two aforementioned units and unit 1 of Santa Cruz—he later slipped in that unit 1 of Nuevitas would also be out of operation for 40 hours starting Wednesday morning to inspect the air heaters, a task he described as "short work."
Unit 1 of Santa Cruz is not expected to be back online until early September due to a turbine issue requiring extended cooling, according to the director.
Given the circumstances, Guerra Hernández warned multiple times that the situation would not improve until Sunday with the reintegration of Céspedes (100 MW) and Felton (200 MW), which together contribute 320 MW.
Yesterday, service was disrupted for 24 hours due to a generation capacity deficit, and the disruption could not be resolved. The maximum disruption was 1,135 MW at 8:40 p.m., coinciding with the peak hour.
As of 7:00 a.m. today, the National Electric System (SEN) had an availability of 2,240 MW against a demand of 2,500 MW, resulting in a 400 MW disruption. A maximum disruption of 650 MW is estimated during the daytime due to a generation capacity deficit. Thermal generation limitations amount to 403 MW.
Additionally, 33 distributed generation plants are offline due to fuel shortages, totaling 170 MW affected. For the peak period, an availability of 2,170 MW is estimated against a maximum demand of 3,250 MW, resulting in a deficit of 1,080 MW. If these conditions persist, a disruption of 1,150 MW is forecasted for this period.
Understanding Cuba's Power Outage Crisis
To provide more insight into the ongoing power outage crisis in Cuba, here are some frequently asked questions and their answers.
What is causing the power outages in Cuba?
The power outages are primarily caused by the breakdowns of key thermoelectric units and fuel shortages affecting distributed generation plants.
When are the thermoelectric units expected to be back online?
The Carlos Manuel de Céspedes unit 4 in Cienfuegos and Felton unit 1 in Holguín are expected to be back online by Sunday, August 25.
What is the expected power deficit during peak hours?
During peak hours, the power deficit is expected to reach up to 1,080 MW, leading to significant disruptions.