Cuba Struggles to Revive Power Grid After Nationwide Blackout
HAVANA: Cash-strapped Cuba is struggling to revive its power grid after fixing a failure at the country’s largest power plant, which caused a nationwide blackout.
The Blackout
Roman Perez Castaneda, the deputy technical director of the Guiteras thermal power plant in central Cuba, said the problem had been resolved, but most of the country was still in the dark. According to authorities, 22 percent of the population, particularly hospitals, were able to get power from sources independent of the national grid, while the rest had none.
The Impact
The blackout, the third in less than two months, dealt another blow to the communist-run island of 10 million people, which is reeling from the effects of two hurricanes, repeated power outages, and a severe economic crisis. Schools in Havana were closed and non-essential state services suspended on Wednesday in now-familiar scenes that have caused growing frustration among Cubans.
The Cause
Communist authorities have blamed previous outages on difficulties in acquiring fuel for the country’s power plants, attributed to the tightening of a six-decade-long US trade embargo that intensified during Donald Trump’s first presidency. However, the island is also in the throes of a broader economic malaise with what experts call its worst economic crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union, which heavily subsidized the one-party state.
The Power Grid
The island gets its power from eight decrepit oil-powered plants that are constantly being patched up, as well as a fleet of generators and floating power plants rented from Turkey. The generators and Turkish plants are run on imported fuel. The repeated power cuts triggered protests last month, a rare occurrence on the island.
The Human Impact
Osnel Delgado, a 39-year-old contemporary dancer, complained Wednesday that the situation was making him "depressed." "You try to constantly overcome the situation but when the environment doesn’t help you, you wind up not wanting to do anything," he said. Thousands of Cubans took to the streets across the island on July 11, 2021, shouting "We are hungry" and "Freedom!" in what was the biggest challenge to the government in years. According to the Mexico-based Justicia 11J NGO, which focuses on human rights in Cuba, more than 1,500 people were arrested after those protests, of whom 600 are still in prison.
Conclusion
Cuba’s power grid struggles are a symptom of a broader economic crisis that has left the island reeling. The country’s reliance on imported fuel and aging infrastructure has left it vulnerable to power outages and blackouts. The government’s response to the crisis has been criticized for being inadequate, leading to growing frustration among Cubans.
FAQs
Q: What caused the latest blackout in Cuba?
A: The blackout was caused by a failure at the Guiteras thermal power plant, the country’s largest power plant.
Q: How many people were affected by the blackout?
A: According to authorities, 78 percent of the population, or around 7.8 million people, were affected by the blackout.
Q: What is the cause of Cuba’s economic crisis?
A: The country’s economic crisis is attributed to a combination of factors, including the tightening of the US trade embargo, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the country’s reliance on imported fuel.
Q: What is the government’s response to the crisis?
A: The government has blamed previous outages on difficulties in acquiring fuel for the country’s power plants, but critics argue that the response has been inadequate and has failed to address the root causes of the crisis.