The Electric Company Villa Clara reported this Sunday that on Saturday it completed the movement and physical placement of a 25 MVA (megavoltamperes) transformer intended for the Santo Domingo 110 kV substation, a step that the technical team itself described as necessary but lengthy: "It will not be an easy task, it will not be quick, but we have already started."
The operation was carried out under adverse weather conditions, with alternating intense sunshine, rain, and multiple setbacks, and required the coordination of specialized personnel, heavy transport equipment, and strict safety measures.
With the equipment already installed in its place, the work is far from finished: connection tasks, testing, adjustments, and technical verification remain outstanding before the transformer can be energized and put into effective service.
The direct antecedent of this installation dates back to July 8, 2025, when a lightning strike hit the 25 MVA transformer at that same substation and left large areas of the municipality without electricity for several days. As a provisional solution, a 33 thousand volt connection was established from Santa Clara, restoring service only in certain localities —Washington, Manacas, Bermejal, 26 de Julio, Criolla, and Las Casimbas— while Santo Domingo, Mordazo, Casacajal, Balilño, Rodrigo, and Amaro remained in the dark at that time.
More than a year after that breakdown, the situation in the municipality continued to be critical. In June 2026, a resident published a public complaint describing the total abandonment of Santo Domingo: no internet, no stable electricity, no water, and a collapsed banking system. "The authorities come, tour the area, take notes, pose for meetings... and nothing changes," she wrote. She also pointed out that the municipality has two photovoltaic parks that were not operating at full capacity and "lose solar generation every day."
The case of Santo Domingo is not an exception, but rather a reflection of the structural electricity crisis that Cuba is experiencing. This Saturday, the available generation in the country was only 1,250 MW compared to a projected demand of 2,900 MW, with a calculated deficit of 1,680 MW during peak hours. The National Electroenergetic System has accumulated eight total collapses during 2026.
The shortage of transformers worsens the situation. According to the General Director of the Electric Union, Rubén Campos Olmos, equipment over 75 kVA is not manufactured in Cuba and must be repaired or imported in a context of severe resource constraints.
In Mayarí, Holguín, to illustrate the national dimension of the problem, nine transformers remained damaged at the end of this week, some out of service for more than 60 days with no set date for resolution. The eastern province recorded 252 damaged transformers during the first half of the year, a 35% increase compared to the same period in 2025.
The installation of the new transformer in Santo Domingo is, in that context, a welcome but limited advancement, and it is far from providing definitive solutions to the serious energy crisis.
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