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The Antonio Guiteras Thermoelectric Power Plant, located in Matanzas, announced this Friday that it was in the process of starting up and that its incorporation into the National Electric Power System (SEN) was expected during peak demand hours, according to a Facebook post by José Miguel Solís.
The news immediately sparked a flood of skeptical and sarcastic comments from Cubans who are weary of the repeated cycles of startup and breakdown of the plant.
The most common reaction was distrust. "I'll give it 48 hours," wrote one user. "I'll give it two or three days... bet on it," added another. A third was more blunt: "It won't make it to tomorrow."
Resignation mixed with dark humor: "Miss Guiteras entering the dance... Get her out, get her out!" a Cuban woman ironized.
Several comments pointed directly to the heart of the issue. “With Guiteras or without Guiteras, blackouts everywhere,” summed up one user.
Another was even more emphatic: "Completely irrelevant, you can take her out of the system for good and nothing will happen, there is no longer any difference."
A resident of Mayabeque pointed out that her municipality had been without electricity for nearly 30 hours and that, even if the power plant came online, her circuit would not benefit from it.
Some directly requested that the launch not be announced. "I kept quiet about the Guiteras launch to see if it could stay in the system for 24 hours and avoid any embarrassments when it leaves the SEN," wrote a user.
Another, addressing the author of the publication, warned: “We, the people of Matanzas, kindly ask you not to give it too much promotion, as we already know that you are the black sheep: you praise it, and the Guiteras will automatically come out.”
Skepticism is based on a devastating history. The Guiteras exited the SEN for the 17th time in 2026 on July 3, due to a leak in the economizer of its boiler, and the plant's director has publicly acknowledged that they do not have the necessary parts for major repairs.
The thermoelectric plant, inaugurated in 1988, has never undergone comprehensive capital maintenance in over 36 years.
The energy context in which this start takes place is devastating. On July 8, the largest energy deficit in the history of Cuba was recorded: 2,341 MW, simultaneously affecting 73% of the population.
Two days earlier, on July 6, the country experienced its third total blackout of the year, leaving about 9.6 million people without electricity.
According to the report from the Electric Union on July 3rd, the availability of the SEN was only 944 MW compared to a demand of 2,745 MW, with 1,605 MW affected.
For the peak hours this Friday, the availability was around 935 MW compared to a demand of 3,100 MW, which indicates an expected deficit of more than 2,100 MW.
Additionally, 106 distributed generation plants remain offline due to a lack of fuel, representing an additional 890 MW that are unavailable.
Matanzas, the city where the Guiteras is located, paradoxically experiences some of the worst blackouts in the country. "It doesn't solve anything for the people of Matanzas," wrote a local user.
Another report stated that the San Juan neighborhood of Sagua la Grande had been without electricity for over 48 hours. A Cuban woman, pleading for the power plant not to fail again, summarized the general mood with a phrase that captures it well: "I hope it stays up, because we are getting worse and worse."
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