The Electric Company of Havana (EELH) announced on its official Facebook profile the implementation of chemical traps at its substations to identify those who steal dielectric oil from transformers, thus joining a strategy already in use in other provinces of the country.
The official text is brief but to the point: "The Electric Company of Havana protects its substations by installing CHEMICAL TRAPS that allow for the identification of individuals involved in potential theft of dielectric oil belonging to the transformers."
How do traps work?
The EELH did not specify the exact mechanism, but the method had already been described when authorities from Jobabo, in Las Tunas, implemented it in photovoltaic facilities just two days before the announcement in the capital.
The journalist Yaidel Miguel Rodríguez Castro from Radio Cabaniguán explained the process: "It's a chemical that adheres to the skin; it's not visible to the naked eye, however, when exposed to ultraviolet light, the contact marks become visible."
To those who suggested that simply wearing gloves would bypass the measure, the journalist responded: "There is the naivety, to think that gloves are a barrier."
A strategy that spans the entire country
The capital is not a pioneer in this approach. In May 2026, Las Tunas had already announced chemical traps in cooperation with the Ministry of the Interior after accumulating 11 thefts of dielectric oil and transformer parts.
The invisible method applied against solar panel thefts in Jobabo confirmed that the strategy now encompasses the entire energy infrastructure of the country, from transformers to photovoltaic installations.
The citizen reaction: irony and accumulated demands
The publication of the EELH generated a mix of skepticism, irony, and accumulated frustration in the comments.
Several users joked that the public notice amounts to alerting the thieves themselves: "And they've just been notified to go with gloves," wrote one of them.
Others took the opportunity to demand the repair of substations that have been out of service for months: the Apolo has been inactive since June 3, and the one supplying Las Minas, La Gallega, and Arango has been inoperable since July 22, with no solution in sight.
A user also pointed out a contradiction that many share: "But they don't set traps for those who steal electricity and sell it."
The statement reflects a broader reality: while the regime tightens measures against infrastructure theft, the electricity crisis remains unresolved. This Wednesday, Cuba recorded a demand of 2,461 MW with an available generation of only 1,060 MW, and Havana had 129 affected circuits.
Dielectric oil, a loot with devastating consequences
This fluid serves as insulation and cooling in transformers; when it is removed, the equipment overheats, suffers short circuits, and becomes inoperable, leaving entire communities without electricity for weeks or months.
Despite this, it is in high demand in the black market, where it is resold as a lubricant or substitute fuel for tractors at up to 500 Cuban pesos per liter, in a context of extreme fuel scarcity.
The Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, acknowledged before the National Assembly that the volume of stolen oil is "almost similar" to that produced in the same period, and that some settlements have gone up to 105 days without electricity due to damage to transformers that are difficult to replace.
Legal framework: from theft to sabotage
The ruling 475 of the People's Supreme Court unified the legal classification of these robberies as sabotage, with penalties ranging from 7 to 30 years of imprisonment, life imprisonment, or the death penalty in the most serious cases.
According to the Attorney General's Office of the Republic, between 2025 and the first half of 2026, over 460 criminal investigations were opened for offenses against the National Electric System, more than 300 of which were for the theft of dielectric oil, detected in all provinces and in 97 municipalities.
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