ETECSA blames "economic difficulties" for connection problems

Tania Velázquez Rodríguez, executive president of Cuba's telecommunications monopoly (ETECSA), blamed "economic difficulties" for the slowness in internet services through the mobile data network.

“During 2022, 500 thousand new lines were registered and more than a million new users demanded internet. This generates a high degree of concurrence in the access network, as it cannot grow with a sufficient level of radio bases," the official commented to the state media. Cubadebate.

The biggest problems in the connection are reported between eight and ten at night, when more than two million people are connected at the same time, a situation to which ETECSA cannot respond, in part due to the lack of an efficient infrastructure. .

"The capacities we had in ALBA-1 are saturated, so during those busy times the demand is not satisfied," confessed Velázquez Rodríguez.

The executive director of ETECSA put her hopes in the new submarine cable that It is installed with the collaboration of the French company Orange, which should improve navigation capacity in Cuba starting in April.

"Likewise, we must increase the capabilities of the software that enables that output so that everything flows correctly," he said.

Likewise, he recognized that ETECSA's offers to multiply by five the balance of mobile lines with international recharges (the main source of income for the state company) affect the number of people who currently use that service in the country and reduce the connection capacity.

"It is necessary to obtain fresh foreign exchange that allows replenishment aimed at expanding the infrastructure," revealed the executive director of ETECSA.

This decision was made to offset the losses generated by packages combined with payments in Cuban pesos.

“We are very pleased to have offers in CUP that please the majority of our clients, but it is also important to offer alternatives to capture the foreign currency that allows us to sustain the service and do so with quality,” he commented.

Velázquez Rodríguez also mentioned the relationship between the blackouts and the slowness of ETECSA's mobile data services.

Only 25% of the more than five thousand radio bases installed in the country today have energy backup.

“We are facing an exceptional situation. Although the nodes have batteries, they are not designed for such intensive use. We have had cases in which the power has gone out and the base station turns off,” he acknowledged.

Once again, the lack of funds to purchase the necessary technological means prevents providing a quality service, since ETECSA does not have the money to purchase the batteries they need, which cost about 30 thousand dollars, according to official data.

ETECSA ruled out the sale of equipment in national currency in the coming months, therefore they will continue to sell these means in foreign currencies and by 2023 it will install only 16 thousand fixed telephone lines, despite the high demand that the service has among Cubans.

In 2019, the only telecommunications company in Cuba recognized that the internet in Havana was slow because there was an increase in the number of users.