The Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric power plant went offline again from the National Electric System (SEN) on Friday night, as reported by journalist Lázaro Manuel Alonso on .
The cause was once again a leak in the boiler, the same failure that had already taken the plant out of the system on May 14.
La Unión Eléctrica (UNE) also shared the news on Facebook, where they mentioned "a leak in the economizer."
The most revealing aspect of the episode is its timeline: the Guiteras had been reconnected to the grid just on Thursday at 7:48 in the morning, after being out of service for four days due to a leak in the economizer. It lasted less than 36 hours online before failing again.
The reactions of Cubans on social media showed not surprise, but resignation and sarcasm in response to a chronic problem.
Many commented that the new ruling was completely predictable. "What's strange is that it didn't happen," wrote one user, while another summarized the general sentiment with irony: "Wow, what a surprise."
Other internet users even questioned the usefulness of announcing the plant's reactivation, given that the relief for the population was practically imperceptible. "But had it even started?" asked one commentator. Another added, "Look at this; we didn't even see an improvement. It's like a Turkish soap opera; no one knows when this story will end."
The prevailing sentiment is that official reports on the arrival and departure of units no longer create expectations among a population accustomed to living with blackouts.
Several users described the Guiteras as a facility worn out after decades of exploitation and partial repairs. "It's reached its limit," one wrote. Another was more graphic, stating that "that Guiteras is like a sieve," referring to the frequency with which leaks appear in various components of the plant.
Popular humor was also present. Some compared the instability of the thermoelectric plant to a permanent traveler. "Guiteras has become streetwise, it lives outside," commented a Cuban.
Another joked that "there's no room for another stamp in the passport with all the in and out," while several compared their constant disconnections to transportation: "The units come and go every day, they leave more often than the Santiago-Havana train."
Some pointed out that the shutdown of the plant barely changes the daily reality because power outages continue regardless of whether the unit is connected. "Don't worry, with Guiteras or without Guiteras, it's the same in the little room," commented an internet user.
The comments reflect the frustration of a population witnessing how the largest thermal power plant in the country fails again just hours after being presented as a recovery for the system.
With this new outage, the plant has accumulated between 10 and 11 system failures so far this year, reinforcing a pattern of breakdowns that the Cuban regime has been unable to resolve structurally.
In May alone, the thermoelectric plant was taken offline at least four times: on the 5th due to a boiler malfunction, on the 14th because of a leak in the boiler, on the 24th for a pore in the economizer, and now again due to a leak in the boiler.
La Guiteras, inaugurated in 1988 and located in Matanzas, is the largest unit block of the Cuban electrical system, with a nominal capacity of 250-270 MW, representing between 20% and 25% of national thermal generation. Each outage immediately exacerbates the country's electrical deficit.
The plant has gone over 16 years without comprehensive capital maintenance— the last one was in 2010. The managers themselves acknowledge that it would require 180 days of shutdown for that review, something that the authorities say they cannot afford given the facility's significance in the system.
The executive Román Pérez Castañeda denied that the failures are due to poorly executed repairs, arguing that the problems appear in different locations each time.
The regime, for its part, attributes the crisis to the U.S. embargo and points out that containers with parts for the Guiteras were held up in France by the shipping company CMA CGM, which did not want to deliver them due to the risk of U.S. sanctions.
The context in which this new breakdown occurs is devastating for the Cuban population. On Friday, the electrical system was operating with a capacity of only 1,400 MW against a demand of 2,770 MW, with an anticipated deficit of 1,800 MW during peak hours.
On Friday, there was a service disruption that lasted for 24 hours, with a peak impact of 1,890 MW at 10 PM, exceeding what was planned.
Power outages in Havana reach 20-22 hours daily; in provinces like Holguín and Granma, cuts exceed 24 hours. Nearly three million Cubans are suffering from water shortages as a direct consequence of the blackouts.
The announcement of the reconnection on Thursday sparked massive mockery on social media, with Cubans betting on how many days the plant would stay online. The answer came in less than a day and a half: the Guiteras shut down again, along with the hope for a reprieve for millions of people who have been living in darkness for months.
Paradoxically, the Guiteras was recently awarded the distinction of "National Vanguard," a recognition that sparked widespread outrage among Cubans and starkly highlights the gap between the official narrative and the reality faced by the Island.
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