Power outages worsen in Cuba: 950 MW disruptions forecasted.

After a black weekend in Cuba, with blackouts due to a deficit of more than 1000 MW both Saturday and Sunday, the week could not start off with worse omens.

For this Monday, the Unión Eléctrica (UNE) predicts power outages throughout the day, with impacts of 211 MW in the morning, 550 MW at noon, and 950 MW during peak hour.

But it is most likely that the figures will remain below.

This is how it happened over the weekend. On Sunday, an impact of 880 MW was estimated, and the final figure was 1,033 MW, while on Saturday, the 800 MW projected reached 1,043 MW.

On both days, the service was affected by a generation capacity deficit for 24 hours.

At this moment, four units from the thermal power plants Mariel, Nuevitas, Felton, and Renté are out of service. Another unit at the CTE Santa Cruz is under maintenance.

In addition, 42 distributed generation plants are out of service due to lack of fuel (316 MW affected) and the limitations in thermal generation are 476 MW.

Evolution of blackouts during the month of September:

Summary of blackouts from the last week:

On September 16, 2024, Cuba began the week with an energy deficit close to 1,000 MW, resulting in extended blackouts due to the inactivity of thermoelectric plants and distributed generators. On September 18, the situation worsened when demand exceeded 3,200 MW and only 41.75% was supplied, leading to power cuts of up to 16 hours. Provinces such as Cienfuegos and Camagüey were severely affected, with blackouts lasting between 6 and 14 hours. The situation was particularly critical on September 19, when a blackout at the Municipal Hospital of Vertientes in Camagüey jeopardized the lives of critically ill patients.

On September 20, the blackouts persisted, severely affecting provinces like Camagüey and Villa Clara, where outages reached up to 14 hours. The crisis intensified on September 22, when the Electric Company of Havana announced an increase in blackout schedules in the capital, reaching up to 20 hours a week. Amid this situation, a poster in Bayamo caused outrage among Cubans, reflecting widespread discontent over the lack of solutions to the electrical crisis, while the government attempted to calm nerves with statements from Prime Minister Manuel Marrero.