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The Lidio Ramón Pérez thermoelectric plant, known as Felton, in Holguín, has been offline since Friday due to a failure in its transformer.
While the entire country suffers from endless blackouts, the plant has once again become the scene of an emergency repair operation.
The engineer Eric Milanés Quinzán, general director of the industry, assured the authorities of Mayarí that the work is focused on:
- Location and sealing of an oil leak in the transformer.
- Repair of a hydrogen leak in the generator.
- Review of two bearings in the turbine.
- Cleaning of the steam condenser.
- Repair of a high-pressure heater.
According to the executive, the goal is to return unit 1 to the system in about 20 days.
Realistic deadlines?
According to previous experiences in similar plants and at Felton itself, this type of repair often extends beyond the official deadlines.
The cleaning of condensers and the repair of high-pressure heaters require the availability of spare parts, lifting equipment, and stable working conditions—elements that are not always guaranteed in the Cuban reality.
The inspection of bearing housings and the repair of leaks in oil and hydrogen systems, although technical, are not quick interventions: they require stopping and dismantling critical equipment, performing leak tests, and subsequent calibrations.
In the context of a modern industrial system, 20 days could be a tight but feasible timeframe; however, within the outdated Cuban infrastructure, marked by chronic shortages of parts and logistical limitations, the promise seems more like a political statement than an achievable technical goal.
Repair the old instead of renewing
The operation in Felton reflects a dynamic that has been repeated for decades: instead of replacing outdated equipment, "patches" are chosen that barely return the plant to a minimal level of operation before another failure occurs.
The Cuban thermoelectric system, with over 40 years of operation and no structural investments, is caught in a cycle of emergencies: repairing what is broken, returning it partially, and waiting for the next collapse.
The Felton plant has endured fires, explosions, and frequent outages in recent years, which highlight the impracticality of maintaining it as a cornerstone of national generation.
A country without light and without a horizon
While engineers and technicians work against the clock in Holguín, millions of Cubans remain in the dark, with blackouts exceeding 20 hours a day.
The government repeatedly makes promises about deadlines that are rarely met, and the people pay the price with lost food, sleepless nights, and a devastated household economy.
The underlying question remains unanswered: Is it useful to repair the irreparable, or is it time to accept that the Cuban electrical system needs more than emergency operations to survive?
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