The energy situation in Cuba is worsening and power outages are increasing after the shutdown of unit 6 in Renté early Thursday morning raised the number of thermal units out of service on the island to seven, according to a report from a Union Eléctrica executive during the daily televised briefing.
Yesterday, the 24-hour service was affected due to a deficit in generation capacity, and during this morning, the electrical service has not been restored.
The maximum impact during peak hours was 1,233 MW at 8:30 p.m., coinciding with the peak time. Although it was slightly lower than planned, the situation worsened after peak hours, when three more units went out of service.
The availability of the National Electroenergetic System (SEN) at 7:00 a.m. today was 1,870 MW, while the demand was 2,650 MW, with 831 MW affected by a generation capacity deficit.
It is anticipated that the daytime impact will be 980 MW at the national level, a figure that could soar to 1,360 MW during nighttime hours.
Currently, seven thermoelectric units are out of service: unit 8 of the Mariel Thermoelectric Power Plant, unit 1 of the Santa Cruz Thermoelectric Power Plant, unit 4 of the Cienfuegos Thermoelectric Power Plant, units 5 and 6 of the Nuevitas Thermoelectric Power Plant, unit 2 of the Felton Thermoelectric Power Plant, and units 5 and 6 of the Renté Thermoelectric Power Plant.
The limitations in thermal generation are 302 MW.
56 distributed generation plants are out of service due to fuel, affecting a total of 388 MW in that regard.
During peak hours, the entry of unit 8 from CTE Mariel is estimated with 70 MW, and the entry of unit 4 from Energas Varadero with 20 MW. However, this will not greatly improve the forecast of power outages.
With this forecast, a availability of 1,960 MW and a maximum demand of 3,250 MW are estimated for peak hours, resulting in a deficit of 1,290 MW. If the expected conditions persist, a maximum impact of 1,360 MW is predicted during that time.
The official journalist Lázaro Manuel Alonso reported on the critical situation in a Facebook post.
"There is no improvement in the National Electric System. The Renté 6 unit in Santiago de Cuba has joined those out of service due to breakdowns. Seven electricity generation blocks are not providing services due to failures. The lack of fuel for distributed generation means that today’s situation will be similar to Wednesday. A generation deficit of around 1360 MW is forecasted," reported Alonso.
The communicator added that in several provinces, severe measures have been adopted in response to the current SEN crisis, including continuous blackouts of up to nine hours with three hours of electricity.
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