Cuba once again found itself plunged this Thursday into one of the most critical nights of the year due to the energy crisis. At 7:00 p.m., the Electric Union (UNE) reported a shortfall of 2,042 MW in the National Electroenergetic System (SEN), with a mere availability of 1,013 MW against a demand of 3,114 MW. In practice, the country only had the capacity to cover 32% of the electricity it needed.
The deficit between available generation and demand exceeded 2,100 MW, leaving a large part of the national territory without electricity during peak consumption hours.
The severity of the situation was evident from the early hours of the day. By 6:00 a.m., the deficit had reached 1,820 MW, and UNE itself had predicted that peak hours could see an impact of up to 2,280 MW, with an estimated demand of 3,250 MW and only 1,000 MW of generation available. According to Infobae, citing data from the EFE agency, blackouts could simultaneously affect up to 70% of the island.
Among the main causes of the crisis are 106 distributed generation plants out of service due to a lack of fuel, in addition to the Patana de Regla, the Patana de Melones, the Central Fuel of Mariel, and the Central Fuel of Moa, all of which are inactive.
While millions of Cubans faced another day of blackouts, the Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, appeared before the National Assembly of People's Power and acknowledged the gravity of the situation.
“There are communities and settlements that have been without electricity for up to 105 consecutive days,” admitted the official during his speech.
It also did not present an encouraging outlook for a possible recovery of the system.
“The road is long”, he stated, attributing part of the crisis to the theft of dielectric oil from transformers and the ongoing fuel shortage. However, he refrained from mentioning the structural deterioration of the thermoelectric plants, whose lack of maintenance has been pointed out for years as one of the main causes of the energy collapse.
Frustration was once again palpable in the streets. In Santiago de Cuba, residents of the Sueño neighborhood staged another protest with pots and pans to denounce the prolonged power outages. Independent journalist Yosmany Mayeta Labrada reported 907 citizen incidents related to the blackouts in that city, where the average time without service hovers around 24 hours.
Julio has become the most critical month of the year for the Cuban electrical system. On July 6, the third total collapse of the SEN so far in 2026 occurred, leaving around 9.6 million people without electricity. Two days later, on July 8, a record deficit of 2,341 MW was recorded, with approximately 73% of the country affected simultaneously. On July 14, another national collapse occurred after the shutdown of the Felton 1 unit, and on July 24, the impact again exceeded 2,300 MW.
The electrical crisis is also continuing to affect the supply of drinking water, as numerous pumping stations depend on electrical power to operate, exacerbating the daily struggles of millions of Cubans.
With another night marked by a deficit exceeding 2,000 MW and no signs of a short-term recovery, the energy crisis continues to deepen, while the Government itself acknowledges that the solution is still far off.
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