Millions in Cuba remain without electricity as major outage persists
Around 80 percent of the island is still without power, with some areas experiencing over 30 hours of outage.
People gather in a plaza as Cuba is hit by an island-wide blackout, in Havana, Cuba, October 18, 2024. / Photo: Reuters
Millions of Cubans remain without electricity because of a prolonged outage at the main power plants on the island.
Reports indicate that a malfunction on Friday at the Antonio Guiteras Power Plant in Matanzas left most of Cuba in the dark.
Authorities announced that following intense efforts, electricity has begun to be restored in some areas, including the capital, Havana.
About 80 percent of the country, however, is still without power, and certain regions have experienced outages lasting more than 30 hours.
Images on social media show the José Martí International Airport in Havana shrouded in darkness.
Energy officials, meanwhile, convening under the leadership of President Miguel Diaz-Canel, are evaluating measures to address the outages.
Aging power plants
Cuba frequently faces electricity shortages due to issues at power plants, which stem from inadequate maintenance of facilities built more than 40 years ago by the Soviet Union.
The Ministry of Energy and Mines said the country consumes 8 million tons of fuel annually, with only 3 million tons sourced from domestic production.
Economic embargoes have forced Cuba to rely heavily on Venezuela, Russia and Mexico for its energy needs.
In recent years, the Cuban government has started leasing floating power plants to mitigate outages and enhance production capacity.
Diaz-Canel wrote on X that efforts to resolve the electricity shortages will continue unabated until the situation improves.
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