The leader Miguel Díaz-Canel assured that, following the passage of the hurricane Melissa, the "minimal effects on photovoltaic parks" are a sign that the country is successfully withstanding the impact of the phenomenon.
"We reviewed the impacts of Melissa on site. No casualties or missing persons reported so far. Minimal damage to photovoltaic parks," he wrote on his X account, emphasizing that restoring electricity and communications is a priority.
The post was accompanied by images of the official tour and messages of optimism about the "immediate recovery."
However, the reality that the Cuban population faces is far from that narrative: prolonged power outages, entire communities without access to basic services, and an energy network that has been collapsing for years.
The government celebrates that the panels "tied with ribbons" did not fly away
During the first post-hurricane assessment meeting, the Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, stated that the solar plants in eastern Cuba suffered little damage.
According to him, only a few panels were lost in Las Tunas and Granma thanks to the "preventive measures adopted."
The minister described the protection strategy as "effective" and emphasized that the necessary spare parts were available for a quick restoration.
In the same vein, the official newspaper Granma proudly titled that the solar parks in the province "successfully passed the test" of the hurricane, reporting only 19 damaged panels out of more than 4,000 under construction in Manzanillo.
The images of panels "tied down with plastic straps" in Holguín and other provinces, shared by the Electric Union itself before the hurricane, sparked mockery and criticism on social media due to the evident inadequacy of the protective measures.
"I already have the net ready to catch them at fly in Florida," joked one user. Another commented sarcastically, "When Melissa comes through, the panels are going to be closer to the sun."
In response to the wave of negative comments, the Electric Union defended itself by stating that the protection measures applied "comply with international standards."
Amid slogans and endless blackouts
The regime attempts to showcase every small achievement as a national victory, while the population endures blackouts that in many areas exceed 20 hours a day.
But the official propaganda omits an essential detail: those solar parks contribute only a tiny fraction of the energy the country needs, while the rest of the electrical grid remains on the brink of collapse.
The thermoelectric plants remain in a critical state due to a lack of maintenance and spare parts, and announcements regarding "new investments in renewable energy" fail to compensate for the paralysis of the system.
Although the solar panels withstood the hurricane, the country's energy infrastructure cannot cope with reality: outdated distribution networks, fallen poles, deteriorating substations, and a system that relies on increasingly scarce imported oil.
Workers in the sector themselves have acknowledged that the so-called "protection of facilities" often comes down to makeshift methods and recycled materials, as evidenced by the photos of panels secured with ropes and tapes.
Energy for the photo, not for the people
Solar parks have become the new symbol of the government's energy propaganda, portraying them as "an example of resilience and sustainability."
However, Cuba does not have a national grid capable of effectively harnessing that energy, and investments in renewable sources are inadequate and uneven.
While Díaz-Canel boasts about intact panels, millions of Cubans continue to cook with firewood, sleep in the dark, and lose food due to a lack of refrigeration.
The official rhetoric speaks of "efficiency," but the reality shows that the energy crisis in Cuba cannot be extinguished with slogans or with a few solar panels that did not fly away with the wind.
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