Large sections of the island, including Havana, lost electricity as authorities scramble to restore the grid during a deepening energy crisis.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
A widespread blackout cut electricity across much of Cuba on Wednesday, affecting the capital city of Havana and large portions of the island as the communist-run government faces growing economic pressure from the United States.
Cuba’s national electricity union, known as UNE, said the outage impacted broad areas of the country stretching from the central province of Camagüey to the western region of Pinar del Río while technicians worked to restore power to the national grid.
Officials said recovery protocols had been activated and that the Felton 1 thermoelectric power plant in Holguín province remained operational while engineers attempted to restart other facilities.
Authorities reported that the blackout followed disruptions in the national electrical system after a major power plant failure, which forced large parts of the grid offline.
The outage occurred as the island struggles with a worsening fuel shortage that has strained its electrical infrastructure and forced rationing of essential services such as transportation and waste collection.
Cuba has endured a series of large-scale power failures in recent years, driven by aging energy infrastructure and fuel shortages that have reduced electricity generation capacity.
The current crisis has been exacerbated by declining oil shipments from traditional suppliers.
Venezuela, historically Cuba’s primary energy provider, has not delivered oil shipments since December following a U.S. operation in early January that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and placed the country’s oil exports under American control.
Mexico has also halted fuel deliveries after Washington warned that tariffs could be imposed on countries continuing to supply oil to Cuba.
Cuba’s government has long blamed its economic hardship on decades of U.S. sanctions, which officials say have limited access to energy supplies and financial resources.
The blackout left large parts of the country without electricity, temporarily disrupting communications and broadcasting as the government began gradual restoration efforts.
Technicians from the national grid operator said power would be restored in stages as generation units are restarted and the electrical system is reconnected across the island.
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