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The energy crisis that has left millions of Cubans enduring blackouts of up to 20 hours a day struck hard once again on Thursday, January 1, and in the early hours of Friday, just hours after the regime proclaimed a supposed "stability" of the National Electric System (SEN) with the arrival of the new year.
According to the report from the Unión Eléctrica (UNE), on Thursday the service was disrupted from 7:29 am to 1:55 pm, and again from 2:56 pm until 10:30 pm.
The maximum impact of the day reached 1506 megawatts (MW) at 6:30 PM, a figure that confirms the severity of the structural collapse of the system.
By this Friday, January 2, the situation shows no improvement.
At 6:00 AM, the actual availability of the SEN was only 1550 MW, against a demand of 1600 MW, which already indicated an immediate shortfall of 110 MW.
At noon, power outages of 400 MW are expected.
On the other hand, during peak hours, a maximum demand of 2950 MW is projected against the same availability of 1550 MW, which would result in a deficit of 1400 MW and a forecasted impact of up to 1430 MW.
The deterioration of the thermoelectric plant continues to be one of the main causes of the collapse.
Units 5 of the CTE Mariel and 2 of the CTE Felton remain out of service, while units 2 of the CTE Santa Cruz and 4 of the CTE Carlos Manuel de Céspedes in Cienfuegos are undergoing maintenance.
Only due to limitations in thermal generation, 726 MW remain out of service.
This situation is compounded by the chronic shortage of fuel and lubricants.
According to the UNE, 79 distributed generation plants are out of service due to this reason, with 753 MW unavailable.
Also inactive are 35 MW from the Melones plant, 48 MW from the Regla plant, and another 142 MW due to a lack of lubricant, totaling 978 MW lost solely due to shortages of basic supplies, a direct evidence of the state's inability to sustain the system.
The government is trying to showcase solar photovoltaic parks as a supposed lifeline.
The UNE reported that the 34 new parks generated 2812 MWh and reached a maximum power of 511 MW during peak hours.
However, these figures fall far short of the deficit of over 1400 MW expected during peak hours, confirming that the proposed solutions do not come close to compensating for the collapse of conventional generation.
In light of this situation, the Electric Company of Havana announced on Facebook that on Thursday, the electricity service in the province was NOT affected due to a deficit, although it reminds that the disruptions "will depend on the demands of the SEN."
The clarification highlights the deep inequality in the distribution of blackouts and the priority given to certain areas, while the rest of the country remains engulfed in prolonged outages.
The contrast with the official discourse could not be more pronounced.
On Thursday, from the Ministry of Energy and Mines, the official journalist Esther Lilian González stated that December 31 "was a good day for the Electric Union" and that "at 12:00 am, when January 1 arrived, everyone in Cuba had electricity".
That image of supposed normalcy lasted only a few hours. The immediate return of widespread blackouts confirmed that it was a propagandistic illusion and not a real solution.
While the regime insists on presenting isolated figures and promises of stability, the reality is that the power system remains mired in a structural crisis caused by years of neglect, mismanagement, and a lack of effective investment.
The result is an entire country trapped in endless blackouts, with an exhausted population continuing to pay the price of the energy collapse.
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