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The Antonio Guiteras Thermal Power Plant (CTE) announced on Tuesday that it expects to complete repairs currently underway to synchronize the plant with the National Electroenergetic System (SEN) by July 8, the day before, a news item that comes amid the worst electricity crisis Cuba is experiencing.
The information was published on the official Facebook page of the plant, just a day after the country experienced the seventh total blackout of the SEN in just 18 months. The collapse on Monday left a capacity of around 1,000 MW against a demand close to 3,100 MW, with a deficit exceeding 2,200 MW.
La Guiteras has been out of service since July 3rd, when it recorded its 17th outage in 2026. Since then, specialists have been working on repairing the economizer of the boiler, which has become the main headache for the largest thermoelectric plant in the country.
According to data from the plant itself, this system has caused half of all the breakdowns recorded this year and has been responsible for the last five consecutive outages of the unit. Between January and May alone, it accounted for 293 hours of downtime due to issues with the economizer.
During June, more than a hundred defective welding wires were replaced in an effort to reduce breakdowns, but the problem keeps recurring.
The director of the thermoelectric plant, Román Pérez Castañeda, has acknowledged that the only definitive solution involves a major repair that would require at least 180 days of downtime, involving the replacement of around 500 tubes and between 1,000 and 1,200 weld beads. However, he admitted that this intervention cannot take place because "the country's situation still does not allow it."
The plant, which has been in operation for over 38 years, has not received comprehensive maintenance since 2010. Although the Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, promised to carry out that repair by the end of 2025, he initially postponed it due to a "temporary issue" and later announced it again this April, without providing a specific start date.
A limited relief for a system on the brink of collapse
While the SEN tries to recover from the national blackout on Monday, the integration of Guiteras would add approximately 200 MW to the electrical grid.
Although this contribution would partially alleviate generation, it is far from resolving the structural deficit the country faces. The crisis has been exacerbated by a fuel shortage: Cuba has gone for more than three months without receiving oil shipments and currently produces only about 40,000 barrels daily, well below the 90,000 to 110,000 barrels needed to sustain the electrical system.
This Tuesday, the reconnection process of the National Electric System (SEN) continued with an electric corridor from Mariel to Sancti Spíritus, while the eastern part of the country awaited the commissioning of the Carlos Manuel de Céspedes power plant. In Matanzas, where Guiteras is located, some municipalities have experienced up to 87 consecutive hours without electricity so far this July.
Cubans react with disbelief
The announcement of the expected date for the return of the Guiteras was met with an avalanche of skeptical comments on social media.
"To leave on the 10th," one user joked.
Another internet user summarized the feelings of many Cubans, accustomed to the constant breakdowns of the plant: "The 9 comes in, the 13 goes out; the 20 comes in, the 24 goes out; the 31 comes in, the 4 goes out, and so on."
The reactions reflect the loss of trust among a significant portion of the population in the official announcements regarding the stability of the electrical system, following months of extended blackouts and repeated breakdowns at the country's main thermoelectric plant.
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