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The Electric Union (UNE) confirmed this Wednesday that the National Electric System (SEN) will continue to experience widespread blackouts, with forecasts of disruptions exceeding 1,800 megawatts (MW), a level that condemns millions of Cubans to unbearable heat, insomnia, and despair.
According to the official report, on Tuesday the service was interrupted for 24 hours and the following morning. The highest recorded impact was 1,857 MW at 9:00 PM, although this figure did not even coincide with the peak demand time, confirming the extreme fragility of the SEN.
The current figures leave no room for optimism. At six in the morning on August 20, the supply barely reached 1,980 MW against a demand of 3,340, resulting in a deficit of 1,374 MW and immediate impacts on the population. During peak hours, UNE estimates that the outages will remain above 1,280 MW.
The causes are the usual ones: breakdowns in units 5 of Nuevitas, 3 of Renté, and 2 of Felton; extended maintenance in three other plants; 396 MW out of service due to thermal limitations, and 58 distributed generation plants halted due to a lack of fuel, totaling 416 MW out of the equation.
For the peak hours this Wednesday, the state-owned company promises the entry of only 100 MW from distributed generators, a figure that falls short of an estimated demand of 3,800 MW. The result will be a deficit of 1,720 MW and a total impact that UNE estimates at 1,790 MW, meaning another day of widespread blackouts.
Meanwhile, the 25 photovoltaic solar parks in operation contributed 2,408 MWh, peaking at 495 MW during midday, a limited relief lasting only a few hours that does not change the landscape of collapse.
Without shame and with figures that repeat like a hammer, the UNE reaffirms that "normalcy" in Cuba will continue to be darkness.
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