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The Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant, the main generating facility in Cuba, went offline from the National Electric System (SEN) on Tuesday morning due to a boiler malfunction.
The forecast is that it will be out of service for four days, according to the Electric Union (UNE) in the note that daily reports on the status of the SEN.
The plant's shutdown results in a loss of 140 MW in an already strained system.
A brief post on the Facebook profile of the Electric Union described the cause of the Guiteras' disconnection from the National Electric System (SEN) as "maintenance"; it also specified that the disconnection occurred "as scheduled" at 9:12 a.m. (local time) on Tuesday.
For this evening's peak hours, the UNE forecasts an availability of only 1,600 MW against a maximum demand of 3,250 MW, resulting in a deficit of 1,650 MW and a projected impact of 1,680 MW.
At 6:30 a.m. today, the system already recorded 1,060 MW affected, with a capacity of 1,690 MW, and an estimated impact of 1,150 MW during the noon period.
The situation worsens because Guiteras is not the only plant facing issues.
The system is experiencing simultaneous outages in Unit 8 of the Máximo Gómez Power Plant, Unit 2 of the Lidio Ramón Pérez Power Plant, and Unit 5 of the Antonio Maceo Power Plant.
They are also under maintenance at the plants in Mariel, Renté, and Nuevitas, with 477 MW out of service due to limitations in thermal generation.
Regarding yesterday, the maximum impact reached 1,578 MW at 7:20 PM, with service being interrupted for 24 hours.
The Eternal Drama of the Guiteras
The Antonio Guiteras Thermoelectric Plant, inaugurated in 1988 in Matanzas, has a nominal capacity of 250 MW and contributes between 20% and 25% of the national thermal generation, making it the most critical link in the struggling Cuban electrical system.
The plant has gone offline at least seven times in 2026 and is the main cause of total collapses.
On March 16, a leak in its boiler caused a blackout that left 68% of the island without electricity for nearly 30 hours.
On April 6th, a new boiler puncture increased the deficit to nearly 1,900 MW.
The plant has never received major maintenance in its more than 36 years of operation, which explains the frequency of its breakdowns.
Paradoxically, just on April 28 - a week before this new breakdown - the CTE Guiteras received the "National Vanguard" distinction for the fifth time awarded by the Central Workers' Union of Cuba, which generated widespread resentment among Cubans suffering from power outages.
The crisis also has a dimension of fuel scarcity.
Following Nicolás Maduro's capture in January of this year, Cuba lost the Venezuelan supply of between 25,000 and 30,000 barrels of oil per day, which accounted for two-thirds of its imports.
The Russian oil received in April ran out at the end of that month, leaving the country once again on the brink of an energy collapse.
With Guiteras out for four days and the rest of the system in critical condition, a week of severe blackouts is likely looming for millions of Cubans.
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