On Tuesday, the synchronization of Cuba's National Electric System (SEN) was achieved; however, this does not herald the end of power outages across the island. The Electric Union (UNE) forecasts outages of 1,042 MW during the peak hours of Wednesday.
"We have started normal operations, but this doesn't mean service interruptions are over. The deficit in generation capacity remains, so service disruptions will continue, even though the system is now under normal operational conditions," stated Lázaro Guerra Hernández, Director General of Electricity at the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MINEM), on Cuban Television.
The SEN was connected at 2:44 p.m., yet by nightfall, with the system operating "in full normalcy," the generation capacity shortfall peaked at 986 MW at 7:30 p.m., coinciding with the peak demand period.
The previous day saw continuous electrical service disruptions over a 24-hour period, with no overnight restoration. Early this morning, demand decreased to a 48 MW shortfall as cooler temperatures reduced air conditioning use in homes, Guerra Hernández noted. As of 7:00 a.m. today, SEN's availability was at 1,880 MW versus a demand of 2,100 MW, leaving 310 MW without service due to capacity shortages.
For noon on October 23, a 650 MW disruption is anticipated. Currently, four thermoelectric units are out of service: Unit 3 of Santa Cruz del Norte is in the startup process for peak demand hours, while Unit 1 of Santa Cruz is also expected to start later today, according to MINEM's director. Units 8 of Mariel and 3 of Carlos Manuel de Céspedes remain out of operation. Additionally, Unit 2 of CTE Santa Cruz and Unit 5 of CTE Renté are under maintenance, contributing to thermal generation limitations totaling 629 MW.
Moreover, 24 distributed generation plants are offline due to fuel shortages, resulting in a loss of 95 MW. For peak hours, the entry of Unit 3 of CTE Santa Cruz, providing 50 MW, alongside Energas Varadero's Units 3 and 4, adding 30 MW and 18 MW respectively, is anticipated.
With these measures, an availability of 1,978 MW is projected against a peak demand of 2,950 MW, resulting in a 972 MW shortfall. If these conditions persist, a 1,042 MW impact is forecasted during this period.
"The positive aspect is that the system operates under normal conditions now; what remains is to manage service disruptions according to available generation capacity and demand patterns," Guerra stated. "Currently, service disruptions are evenly distributed nationwide, and the entire system is interconnected, following the 'impact strategy' that was in place before the system failure," he concluded.