Related videos:
The Unit 5 of the Antonio Maceo Thermal Power Plant (CTE), known as Renté and located in Santiago de Cuba, was taken out of service this Wednesday under "emergency standby", according to the state-owned Electric Union (UNE) in their social media.
The official report, released around 11:30 in the morning, indicates that the unit unexpectedly went offline, which represents another setback for the already weakened National Electric System (SEN) amid a prolonged energy crisis.
According to the most recent report from the National Electroenergetic System (SEN) released by the Electric Union on Wednesday morning, the country was already facing a complex situation before the new breakdown.
At 6:00 a.m., the availability was 1,120 MW compared to a demand of 2,337 MW, resulting in a shortfall of 1,225 MW, while for the peak evening hours, a deficit of nearly 1,870 MW and outages of up to 1,900 MW were projected.
With the unexpected shutdown of Unit 5 at the Renté thermoelectric plant, the anticipated impacts could increase further throughout the day, in a system that is already operating with several units out of service due to breakdowns or maintenance.
The offline status of this unit adds to a series of reported failures in different thermoelectric plants across the country since the beginning of the year, which have caused recurring generation deficits of over 1,500 to 2,000 megawatts during peak hours. These conditions have resulted in prolonged blackouts that daily affect millions of Cubans.
The Renté thermal power plant, one of the main generation facilities in the eastern region, has been mentioned several times in recent reports regarding outages and unit disconnections.
At the beginning of February, failures at this plant, along with issues at other power stations in the country, contributed to a widespread blackout in eastern provinces of Cuba.
Experts indicate that the deterioration of the national thermal power plant infrastructure—largely made up of facilities that have been in operation for decades—is one of the central factors behind the current electricity crisis.
This is compounded by the lack of fuel, delays in maintenance, and limitations on investing in system modernization.
Although the regime's authorities have promoted renewable generation projects, mainly solar parks, their impact remains limited in the face of the structural generation deficit, especially during peak nighttime demand hours.
So far, the Electric Union has not reported how long Unit 5 of Renté will be out of service or the impact this breakdown could have on the outage forecasts for the rest of the day. In the meantime, the loss of this unit adds pressure to an electrical system that is already operating at its limit.
Filed under: