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The energy crisis facing Cuba showed no mercy even on the last Sunday of June, the penultimate day of the month.
In its informative note this Monday, La Unión Eléctrica (UNE) announced that the previous night the electricity generation deficit reached 1,829 megawatts (MW) at 9:00 PM, coinciding with the peak national demand time and exceeding the state company's forecasts.
This new peak in impact—although slightly lower than the historical record of 1,936 MW set on Saturday—confirms the sustained collapse trend of the National Electric System (SEN), which remains mired in continuous outages around the clock, extending chronically into the following early morning.
According to the official report from the UNE, the availability of the SEN at seven in the morning this Monday was only 1,800 MW, while demand reached 3,100 MW, resulting in a morning deficit of 1,378 MW.
For the half-hour schedule, an impact of 1,450 MW was estimated, figures that reflect the magnitude of the operational incapacity of the system.
Despite the addition of 18 new photovoltaic solar parks, their impact remains limited. On Sunday, they generated 1,720 megawatt-hours, with a maximum output of 378 MW at noon, a figure insufficient to bridge the significant gaps in thermal and distributed generation.
Meanwhile, the main power plants in the country remain out of service due to breakdowns or extended maintenance. Units 5 at Mariel and Nuevitas, along with Unit 2 at Felton, are not generating due to failures, while three other units—Unit 2 at Santa Cruz, Unit 4 at Cienfuegos, and Unit 5 at Renté—are shut down for maintenance work.
These incidents are compounded by thermal limitations that keep an additional 351 MW out of service, worsening the technical situation.
The distributed generation is also greatly affected by the shortage of fuel and lubricants. Currently, 98 plants are out of service due to a lack of fuel, resulting in a loss of 796 MW, along with another 31 MW affected by the lack of oil in engines. In total, 827 MW remain inactive for this reason.
During the peak nighttime hours, the partial entry of certain thermal units is expected—among them unit 5 from Mariel, unit 5 from Nuevitas, and unit 6 from Boca de Jaruco—as well as the recovery of about 80 MW in distributed generation.
If the forecast is realized, availability would rise to 2,055 MW. However, with an expected demand of 3,580 MW, the deficit will remain at 1,525 MW, with a projected impact of 1,595 MW, slightly lower than in previous days.
June ends as one of the most critical months of the year for the Cuban electrical system. For several consecutive days, deficits exceeded 1,800 MW, solidifying an unparalleled crisis.
Cuban families are facing blackouts lasting up to 24 continuous hours, with no refrigeration for food, no possibility to cook, rest, or work, and without a clear response from the regime, which continues to issue repetitive technical reports as the country sinks into darkness.
The hope for an improvement in summer has been reduced to an empty slogan, and the people continue to suffer the consequences of a collapsed system, increasingly skeptical of the reports from the state company and outraged by the ineptitude of the government of Miguel Díaz-Canel to resolve the energy crisis.
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