Cuba sees island-wide blackout after power plant failure

[Cigar Surgeon]

https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/18/americas/cuba-blackout-power-plant-failure-intl-latam/index.html.

 

Quote

 

HavanaCNN — 

Cuba’s electrical grid shut down on Friday, putting the country into a blackout after the failure of one of the island’s major power plants, according to its energy ministry.

In a statement on X, the ministry said “the failure” of the Antonio Guiteras Power Plant caused “the total disconnection of the National Electrical System” from 11 a.m. ET on Friday.

In Havana, motorists on Friday tried to navigate the city where no street lights appeared to be working and only a handful of police were directing traffic. Generators are a luxury for most Cubans and only a few could be heard running in the city.

This week, Cuba’s increasingly energy-strapped government called for draconian measures to save power, including telling many workers to stay home.

Classes at schools were canceled from Friday through the weekend, nightclubs and recreation centers were ordered closed, and only “indispensable workers” should show up at their jobs, according to a list of energy-saving measures published by the state-run website Cubadebate earlier on Friday.

Millions of people on the communist-run island have been left without power over the last several days as the aging Cuban electrical grid repeatedly collapsed.

Cuban officials blamed a confluence of events from increased US economic sanctions to disruptions caused by recent hurricanes and the impoverished state of the island’s infrastructure.

In a televised address on Thursday, that was delayed because of technical difficulties Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz said much of the country’s limited production was stopped to avoid completely leaving people without power.

“We have been paralyzing economic activity to generate (power) to the population,” he said.

Marrero said fuel shortages had left much of Cuba in the dark but that shipments by boat in the coming days would improve the situation.

“We are not in an endless abyss,” he said.

Struggling infrastructure

Cuba’s energy crisis is not a new problem. The island’s limited infrastructure has not received the maintenance it requires for years and recurring blackouts date back to the 1990s.

The situation was further aggravated in 2022 by a fire at a fuel facility in Matanzas, in the island’s west, which destroyed 40% of the country’s main fuel storage structure.

The Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, has warned since March that the conditions of the thermoelectric plants pose challenges for the country, according to statements provided to its state television.

In fact, seven of the eight thermoelectric plants that supply energy to Cuba are broken or under maintenance, according to a statement released this Wednesday by the Cuban Electric Union and the Ministry of Energy and Mines of the island.

The Cuban Electric Union has also reported that 37 power generation plants are out of service due to lack of fuel. These plants are in the areas of the Mariel, Mariel and Santiago de Cuba.

CNN en Español has requested comments from the Cuban Electric Union, as well as the Cuban government, to find out the number of people affected by the lack of electricity and what measures they are taking to improve the situation and is awaiting a response.

On Monday, Cuban authorities reported the installation of solar energy panels, which they hope will increase the energy generation capacity on the island. But the first of the announced projects – which would produce about 1,000 watts of electricity per hour – will only be ready in two years.

 

 

[El Presidente]

There is so much kindling. When is enough, enough?

 

[garnett]

There will only be change when somebody stands up and is willing to die to make it better someone else.

[LizardGizmo]

I am very lucky to have gotten out today before everything shut down. We were on a flight to Miami when the grid failed. One of my pod guys is still there - awaiting the arrival of a few friends to stay a few extra days - and it is very difficult to speak with him at this time.

The government is lying to the people about the severity and reality of this (no surprise), but based on last night’s announcement of limiting electricity usage this weekend and the lead up to the ‘power plant failure’, I believe they have run out of fuel for the power plants due to not paying their bills. The tobacco factories, all nonessential workplaces and schools were shut today in anticipation of this. The last few nights there have been extremely stormy as well, so I’d imagine that complicates things. Rolling blackouts have consistently increased in the last week - even in Havana. Habana Vieja was mostly spared until today, but in Vedado we had blackouts daily. Outside of Havana, Cubans are experiencing extreme stretches of power outages at any given time.

Based on what my Cuban friends are saying and the general feeling last night around Havana, it feels different to me this time. I am sick to my stomach that Pagoda is there and I’m on a flight home and I am terrified for the poorest of Cubans outside of Havana who don’t have water, food nor electricity. Every person I have spoken to on WhatsApp from the plane (some still have generator power in Havana) is sharing a common deeply troubled feeling about things today. One of my close friends there - a very resourceful guy - said it’s the first time he’s truly felt nervous for his health and safety in his near 40 years in Cuba.

[Corylax18]

1 hour ago, El Presidente said:

There is so much kindling. When is enough, enough?

The people who have had enough are already gone, or will be soon.

I love Cuba and most Cubans that I've met, but the "fight" required to change things for the better has been conditioned out of them over three generations now. From a societal stand point, they just don't even think about fighting back. The military/ruling class will continue to exploit the masses until there are no masses left to exploit. The country has lost roughly a million people in the last 5 years or so. At that rate, the old Revolutionaries kid's and grand kid's have another 40 or 50 years before everyone is gone.

[LizardGizmo]

26 minutes ago, Corylax18 said:

The people who have had enough are already gone, or will be soon.

I love Cuba and most Cubans that I've met, but the "fight" required to change things for the better has been conditioned out of them over three generations now. From a societal stand point, they just don't even think about fighting back. The military/ruling class will continue to exploit the masses until there are no masses left to exploit. The country has lost roughly a million people in the last 5 years or so. At that rate, the old Revolutionaries kid's and grand kid's have another 40 or 50 years before everyone is gone.

Well said - and it’s incredible how with a million+ less people on the island, they are still at one of the - if not the - lowest economic and societal points in the country’s history. Spreading today’s available basic necessities among an additional million people is unthinkable.

[ha_banos]

1 hour ago, LizardGizmo said:

 

I am very lucky to have gotten out today before everything shut down. We were on a flight to Miami when the grid failed. One of my pod guys is still there - awaiting the arrival of a few friends to stay a few extra days - and it is very difficult to speak with him at this time.

The government is lying to the people about the severity and reality of this (no surprise), but based on last night’s announcement of limiting electricity usage this weekend and the lead up to the ‘power plant failure’, I believe they have run out of fuel for the power plants due to not paying their bills. The tobacco factories, all nonessential workplaces and schools were shut today in anticipation of this. The last few nights there have been extremely stormy as well, so I’d imagine that complicates things. Rolling blackouts have consistently increased in the last week - even in Havana. Habana Vieja was mostly spared until today, but in Vedado we had blackouts daily. Outside of Havana, Cubans are experiencing extreme stretches of power outages at any given time.

Based on what my Cuban friends are saying and the general feeling last night around Havana, it feels different to me this time. I am sick to my stomach that Pagoda is there and I’m on a flight home and I am terrified for the poorest of Cubans outside of Havana who don’t have water, food nor electricity. Every person I have spoken to on WhatsApp from the plane (some still have generator power in Havana) is sharing a common deeply troubled feeling about things today. One of my close friends there - a very resourceful guy - said it’s the first time he’s truly felt nervous for his health and safety in his near 40 years in Cuba.

Wow. I was reading some social media reports about this and wondering if it's just attention seeking socmed. Hope pagoda is ok. Praying for the people. Jeez what happens next?

 

https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/cuba-implements-emergency-measures-millions-go-without-electricity-2024-10-18/

 

[ha_banos]

And is this a second outage as the start to bring the power back? Or the same incident? 

https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/cubas-electrical-grid-collapses-second-time-entire-country-again-without-power-2024-10-19/

[VeguerosMAN]

6 hours ago, ha_banos said:

And is this a second outage as the start to bring the power back? Or the same incident? 

https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/cubas-electrical-grid-collapses-second-time-entire-country-again-without-power-2024-10-19/

I think it's a second outage. People are losing patience as they haven't had power since yesterday. 

[VeguerosMAN]

I think there will be riots...

[MrBirdman]

The fight may have been conditioned out of Cubans over generations, but I doubt the will to live has. Should the risk of resistance eventually be outweighed by the near certainty of starvation and disease, maybe things will “manifest” as Yeni says. They can’t throw the whole country in jail. Though short term the more likely outcome is further exodus, though I don’t know how many of those left have the resources to flee. Terrible situation for Cubans. 

[ha_banos]

Ooh third attempt to start the power system failed 

https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/cuba-suffers-third-major-setback-restoring-power-island-millions-still-dark-2024-10-20/

A view from the blackout neighborhood toward Havana

 

There are only nine meals between mankind and anarchy.

[VeguerosMAN]

If they are on schedule they should have power back in 3 hours (11:am est).

[SCgarman]

13 hours ago, MrBirdman said:

The fight may have been conditioned out of Cubans over generations, but I doubt the will to live has. Should the risk of resistance eventually be outweighed by the near certainty of starvation and disease, maybe things will “manifest” as Yeni says. They can’t throw the whole country in jail. Though short term the more likely outcome is further exodus, though I don’t know how many of those left have the resources to flee. Terrible situation for Cubans. 

Safe to say making cigars is the least of their worries right now. When a country can't keep the power grid up, all else pales in comparison. Adding to the lack of food, now everything in the refrigerator is spoiled, how does it get any worse? Of course the Cuban gov't will blame US policy as they always tend to do. 

[Chitmo]

24 minutes ago, SCgarman said:

Safe to say making cigars is the least of their worries right now. When a country can't keep the power grid up, all else pales in comparison. Adding to the lack of food, now everything in the refrigerator is spoiled, how does it get any worse? Of course the Cuban gov't will blame US policy as they always tend to do. 

I’d argue that given that it’s one of their only exports it’s more important than ever to keep it going. 

[ha_banos]

Interesting chart...

[Cigar Surgeon]

Third day no power: https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/20/americas/cuba-blackout-third-day-failed-restore-intl/index.html

[99call]

I hope all the electric gates. Security lights, cameras etc. etc are also out on the leaders compounds.

Time to face the people. Revolution goes both ways.

[MrBirdman]

My sense from the reporting is that Cubans attribute this to simply being out of fuel, as @LizardGizmo suggested. Their stillborn attempts at restoring power suggest it might be a combination of things. CNN says that about 10% of Havana has power as of this afternoon. What a friggin mess. 

[LizardGizmo]

I do believe that it is primarily fuel related, as they issued a warning Thursday night while I was in Havana canceling work, school and all nonessential activity through the end of the weekend. They just didn't act early enough. It went from rolling blackouts in major areas and long periods of electricity in rural areas to a complete systemwide shutdown. They knew what was coming and why - leading to the complete collapse of the Matanzas plant once the peripheral plants started to 'fail', due to 'strain'. 

Even if they get the power back on, it seems like the system is at a complete breaking point. Until Venezuela, Russia, China or some other willing-to-not-be-paid debtor rolls in regularly with a crude oil tanker, thousands of tons of coal or a nuclear power plant on wheels, this is going to be a long term nightmare for Cubans. 

At the end of the day, strain is fairly manageable as they can turn off as much or as little of the demand as they want - as we've seen them do with the rolling blackouts. Power plants cannot all fail at once systemwide, except when "failure" is defined as a lack of carbon driving the turbines. Any success they have restoring this is in the short term is likely due to them tapping the minimal reserves they might have stored around the island and the small amount of crude oil they produce daily.

The dream team, ladies and gentlemen. Hard to not laugh at the VANS shirt:

Edited October 21, 2024 by LizardGizmo
I misstated that the announcement was Friday, but it was Thursday evening.

[ha_banos]

4th power failure

https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/cuba-suffers-third-major-setback-restoring-power-island-millions-still-dark-2024-10-20/

[amberleaf]

A 'black start' of a power grid is a notoriously tricky thing to do, even in developed nations. I'm not confident that they will get it up and running any time soon.

[Puros Y Vino]

Correct me if I'm wrong, I could have sworn their power system failed a few years back. In terms of power generation at the very least. To make up for those failures didn't Turkey send 3 or more ships with generators which they then tied into the power distribution network? Those ships burn the low grade fuel Cuba has access to and because they aren't able to provide 100% power, at least to Havana and the surrounding areas, rolling blackouts were a constant thing?

[MrBirdman]

12 minutes ago, Puros Y Vino said:

Correct me if I'm wrong.  I could have sworn, their power system failed a few years back.  In terms of power generation at the very least.  To make up for those failures didn't Turkey send 3 or more ships with generators which they then tied into the power distribution network?  Those ships burn the low grade fuel Cuba has access to and because they aren't able to provide 100% power, at least to Havana and the surrounding areas, rolling blackouts were a constant thing?

The more I read the more it sounds like they’re just out of fuel - as for the ships, it’s possible that the recent hurricanes have dampened their domestic production, most of which is offshore I believe. 

[Arabian]

6 hours ago, Puros Y Vino said:

Correct me if I'm wrong, I could have sworn their power system failed a few years back. In terms of power generation at the very least. To make up for those failures didn't Turkey send 3 or more ships with generators which they then tied into the power distribution network? Those ships burn the low grade fuel Cuba has access to and because they aren't able to provide 100% power, at least to Havana and the surrounding areas, rolling blackouts were a constant thing?

Yes, even those ships ran out of fuel and were left anchored in the bay. To add salt to the injury, the Cubans couldn't pay them (an estimate of monthly rent at $260m USD) and instead offered them a concession for 25 years of the Havana shipyard.