Cuba suffers nationwide power blackout amid energy crisis

Cuba's national power grid suffered a total disconnection Friday, leaving the island without electricity amid an energy crisis, according to the Electricity Union (UNE).

“A total disconnection of the National Electric System has occurred. The protocols for recovery are already being activated,” UNE said on US social media company X.

The utility said it was immediately investigating the cause and would continue providing updates as efforts to restore the system progressed.

The blackout is the latest in a series of nationwide power failures affecting Cuba this year, as the country's aging power infrastructure struggles with fuel shortages and limited generation capacity.

Cuba experienced several nationwide blackouts in July and another major outage on Aug. 2, according to authorities and international media reports. Friday's failure was the latest total collapse of the national grid.

The latest blackout comes after prolonged electricity shortages in Havana and other parts of the country. Some areas of the capital have experienced outages lasting more than 30 hours in recent weeks, according to reports.

The power system has been affected by the deteriorating condition of its thermal power plants, shortages of fuel and difficulties maintaining generation capacity.

The Energy and Mines Ministry has previously attributed disruptions to a combination of aging infrastructure, fuel shortages and problems affecting the electricity generation system.

Renewable energy sources have provided some additional generation capacity, but thermal power plants remain a major component of Cuba's electricity system.

The electricity shortages have also affected essential services, including water supplies and telecommunications, according to reports.

Cuba's government has blamed US measures and restrictions affecting fuel supplies for worsening the energy crisis. Washington has attributed the economic and infrastructure problems to the Cuban government's policies.