The Minister of Energy and Mines of Cuba, Vicente de la O Levy, appeared before the press after the fifth total collapse of the National Electric Power System that occurred this Tuesday at 11:05 in the morning, and the reaction of Cubans on social media was immediate and overwhelming.
The minister stated that the power outages of the SEN "do not result from operational errors" and attributed the crisis to external causes: "We say it and we repeat it: there is a complete lack of fuel, and we do not have access to spare parts for our thermoelectric units or for those of Energás."
This is the third total blackout in just eight days, and the fifth so far this year, in a context where daily blackouts already average between 20 and 24 hours across the island.
At the time of the minister's appearance, only 4% of Havana's customers had electricity service, equivalent to about 33,188 customers with just 17 MW of available power.
The collapse also worsened the condition of the Antonio Guiteras Thermoelectric Power Plant, the largest in the country, which has gone 16 years without major maintenance and has experienced at least 17 unscheduled outages so far in 2026, causing a leak in its boiler, the extent of which is still being assessed.
The minister's statements triggered a wave of criticism in the post by Cubadebate on Facebook, where hundreds of users dismissed the argument of the embargo as the sole explanation.
"The story of the good pipe, the one that never ends," summed up a user, a phrase that reflects the frustration of many Cubans.
Others pointed out the contradiction between unfulfilled promises and reality: "How is it possible that there are so many blackouts during the day in Cuba with 72 solar parks already installed? How, with 72 parks and almost 12 hours of sun during these months of the year, does the Cuban people only have two hours of electricity a day? Either you are shamelessly lying to our faces, or we are becoming more and more confused every day," wrote a citizen, recalling that in April 2025 the ministry itself stated that only eight parks were generating 958 MWh daily.
The outrage also pointed to the history of broken promises by De la O Levy himself: in September 2024, the minister stated that Cuba would have "at least one minute of generation without consuming imported fuel" in 2025, a commitment that was never fulfilled.
A widely shared comment demanded: "Mr. Minister, this is not the time for self-admiration; that is a sign of impotence. It is time to acknowledge the errors, causes, and solutions. We are still waiting for the incorporation of the 400 MW that your subordinate promised before July 26."
The question that was asked most frequently was why, during the years when Cuba received significant supplies of Venezuelan oil and higher tourism revenue, the regime prioritized the construction of luxury hotels like the Torre K in Havana over the modernization of outdated power plants.
"To build hotels along the Malecón, there was no blockade," one user wrote, while another pointed out, "In 67 years, there have been no spare parts; so why do all the materials appear for building hotels?"
Several commentators also pointed out that Cuban thermoelectric plants operate with Soviet technology from the 1980s, not American, questioning the logic of blaming the embargo for the lack of spare parts when Russia and China could supply them.
The minister concluded his appearance with a warning that many interpreted as a confession of helplessness: "It's a long, tough journey that requires great sacrifice," he said, referring to the so-called energy transition, while the Prime Minister Manuel Marrero promised to restore the SEN "as soon as possible" without providing specific deadlines.
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