The state-owned Unión Eléctrica (UNE) of Cuba announced that more than two-thirds of the country's customers have regained service after the nationwide blackout last Friday. According to UNE, by Tuesday morning, 70.89% of customers already had connections to the electrical subsystems in the country.
On one hand, the subsystem in the western third has reached Pinar del Río in a limited manner. In Havana, coverage was fully restored on Monday, while in Santiago de Cuba it reaches 9% and in Holguín only 4.5%. The General Director of Electricity at the Ministry of Energy and Mines (Minem), Lázaro Guerra, warned that the recovery of the connection does not guarantee a constant electrical flow due to insufficient generation capacity.
Cuba has been facing an energy crisis for years, recently exacerbated by fuel shortages and shortcomings in its obsolete thermoelectric plants. A breakdown at the Antonio Guiteras plant in Matanzas triggered last week's total blackout. Frequent blackouts affect the Cuban economy and contribute to social discontent in the context of an economic crisis.
On the other hand, areas are being interconnected to reach Santiago de Cuba and connect it to the eastern subsystem. Regional inequalities persist, according to UNE data.
