Americas

Cuba hit by mass blackout as main power plant fails

Government had earlier announced it would be ‘paralysing’ key industries and canceling official activities to prioritise electricity for the residential sector

Children playing in the street in Matanzas, Cuba, on Friday after their classes were cancelled due to a nationwide blackout. Photograph: Antonio Levi/AFP
Children playing in the street in Matanzas, Cuba, on Friday after their classes were cancelled due to a nationwide blackout. Photograph: Antonio Levi/AFP
Fri Oct 18 2024 - 20:59

Electricity went out across the entirety of Cuba on Friday after the island’s main power plant failed and the government throttled key industries in an effort to save fuel.

In a post on X the ministry of energy and mines said the unexpected failure of the 330-megawatt capacity CTE Antonio Guiteras plant at about 11am had caused a “total disconnection” of the national grid. Workers were trying to restore service, the ministry added.

Hours before the power went out, the government announced it would be “paralysing” key industries and cancelling official activities in order to prioritise electricity for the residential sector.

Power outages across the communist-run island are commonplace. But the frequency and duration of blackouts has been on the rise as Cuba’s ageing power generators break down and the cash-strapped government struggles to import enough fuel.

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Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel called the latest blackout an “absolute priority”, and said on X that there would be “no rest until it is reestablished”.

The Caribbean nation is trapped in its worst economic crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Food and fuel shortages have sparked rare public protests, and since 2021 the island has lost 10 per cent of its population. Cuba’s leaders often blame US economic sanctions for its economic challenges.

During a nationally televised address on Thursday evening, prime minister Manuel Marrero said a combination of failing infrastructure, lack of fuel and rising demand was leading to crippling blackouts. As a result, he said the government had decided to “paralyse economic activities” and “prioritise the residential sector”.

Before Friday’s blackout hit there were reports of factories and businesses being closed. Schools were also cancelled on Friday, but the government said it was due to the weather – not the energy crisis.