Rabat – A large power outage struck much of Cuba on Wednesday, including the capital Havana, after a key thermoelectric plant unexpectedly shut down, the state electricity company said.
The Electric Union (UNE) reported that the disruption began after a failure at the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant, located about 100 kilometers east of Havana.
The shutdown caused a breakdown across the national grid and left several provinces without electricity.
The outage affected a wide stretch of the island, from the western province of Pinar del Río to Camagüey in central Cuba. Electricity also went out in the eastern province of Las Tunas after problems at local substations. Only the far eastern provinces continued to receive power.
Officials at the Guiteras plant said technical teams identified a malfunction in the boiler system that caused leaks and forced the generating unit offline.
Repairs could require three to four days as crews work to resolve the damage and restore normal operations, the regional newspaper Giron reported, citing Roman Perez, technical director of the plant.
The blackout disrupted daily life in several cities. In Havana, some traffic lights stopped working and parts of the capital lost television broadcasts for a short period.
The national midday news bulletin aired more than 30 minutes later than usual due to the outage.
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Many residents reacted calmly, as power cuts have become common in recent years. Some businesses and homes relied on generators or solar panels to keep essential services running.
Cuba’s electricity system has faced repeated strain due to aging infrastructure and fuel shortages.
The government says long-standing US sanctions have restricted access to fuel and equipment, which limits maintenance and investment in the energy sector.
Fuel supplies have become even tighter in recent months. Oil deliveries from Venezuela have declined, and Mexico recently announced it would stop shipments after the US threatened tariffs on countries that export oil to Cuba.
The shortages have forced authorities to reduce or ration certain public services, including transportation and waste collection, while many households search for alternative energy sources to cope with frequent outages.
