TRANSCRIPT
Approximately 10 million Cubans have been plunged into darkness following the failure of one of the island nation's major power plants.
Lazaro Guerra is the General Director of Electricity at the Cuban Ministry of Energy and Mines.
He says the Antonio Guiteras power plant, the country's largest and most efficient, went offline, prompting a total grid failure.
“At 11 in the morning, the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant, which was generating approximately 210 Megawatts at that time, went offline. We are reviewing the reasons for this shutdown; we currently do not have the cause, but when the unit went offline, the system collapsed. That is, it is at total zero from that hour. From then on, we are investigating the causes of the system failure at Antonio Guiteras, but the country was left without energy.”
Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel has posted on X that there will be no rest until power is restored.
How many have been able to view that post is unclear, as the power outage has also resulted in the Internet becoming inaccessible.
Carlos Roberto Julio was on holiday in Cuba when the lights went out on Thursday evening.
His vacation is not going the way he hoped.
“Now we’re without internet too, and we went to a restaurant and there was no food because there was no power, but we arrived yesterday, so it’s hard to say, but in two days we’ve already had several inconveniences.”
Alfredo Lopez is the General Director of the Cuba Electrical Union.
“We recognise that the situation is very tough, but those of us managing these processes are highly sensitive to the fact that there are problems and difficulties and that the outages are very strong.”
The massive outage has prompted the government to implement emergency measures to slash demand on the power grid.
Cuba's Prime Minister Manuel Marrero says this includes the suspension of classes, shutting down some state-owned workplaces and the cancellation of non-essential services.
“When we say that we have reached this point, we must say with all transparency that we have had to paralyse the economy and all the fundamental institutions to be able to guarantee this minimum of electricity to the population.”
The Prime Minister says the power outage was caused by increased demand from small and medium-sized businesses, the use of air conditioners in homes, breakdowns in ageing thermoelectric plants that have not been adequately maintained, and a shortage of fuel to run certain facilities.
Independent worker Marcos Antonio Rosello says he and his family have little choice but to endure what the outage may bring.
"We are going through complicated times, every Cuban knows that, and well, I suppose the measures that have been taken are for our good but the people are feeling it. I for example am a worker, I'm working, and I am feeling it. I have a little boy, the heat is complicated for the little ones. But well, we are surviving and seeing what we have to face now."
