Millions Left Without Power as Cuba Suffers Another Nationwide Blackout

Millions of people across Cuba have been left without electricity after the country’s national power grid suffered another total collapse, deepening an energy crisis that has brought increasingly frequent and prolonged blackouts.

Cuba’s Energy Ministry said the entire electricity system experienced a “total disconnection” on Friday. The latest outage was triggered by a failure in high-voltage transmission lines in central Cuba at around 14:00 local time, with unstable weather also contributing to the disruption.

The blackout affected the island’s population of more than nine million people. Electricity was gradually restored to some areas, with priority given to critical facilities including hospitals and water systems, while much of Havana remained without power.

Felix Estrada, an official with Cuba’s National Electrical Union, said protocols had been activated for the gradual restoration of electricity as engineers worked to reconnect the national grid.

The latest collapse is part of a worsening pattern of power failures across Cuba. Reuters described it as the sixth major nationwide grid collapse since January, while other reports have counted more nationwide outages depending on whether separate regional and national failures are included.

Even when the national system remains operational, many Cubans have faced rolling blackouts lasting more than 30 hours. Some areas outside Havana have experienced outages lasting considerably longer.

Fuel shortages deepen energy crisis

Cuba’s electricity system has been weakened by ageing power plants, deteriorating infrastructure and a severe shortage of fuel needed to operate its thermoelectric facilities.

The country depends heavily on imported fuel, and restrictions on access to oil and replacement parts have further complicated efforts to maintain and operate its electricity infrastructure.

Cuban authorities have blamed US sanctions and restrictions for worsening the fuel crisis. Washington, however, attributes the country’s economic and energy problems largely to the management of Cuba’s state-run economy.

The energy shortage has affected more than electricity. Prolonged blackouts have disrupted water supplies, communications, transportation and other essential services.

Food and medicine shortages have also added to the pressure on households and public institutions, while hospitals have faced difficulties maintaining normal operations.

Residents say repeated blackouts have made everyday life increasingly difficult.

Havana resident Frank Lorenzo told Reuters that electricity had recently been restored for only a short period before another outage occurred.

Lidia Fernandez, a 36-year-old teacher, told AFP that the continuing shortages had left people dealing with a lack of electricity, water and cooking gas at the same time.

Another Havana resident, 78-year-old Francisco Rodriguez, said his home had already experienced a prolonged outage and feared that electricity could remain unavailable for several more days.

Growing public frustration

The repeated blackouts have also contributed to growing public frustration and rare protests in Cuba, where unauthorised demonstrations are prohibited and participants can face arrest.

The latest crisis comes amid heightened tensions between Havana and Washington.

The Trump administration has tightened economic pressure on Cuba, including measures targeting the country’s access to fuel. On 17 September, Washington announced new sanctions against 11 Cuban entities, including state-run companies connected to nickel resources and military enterprises.

Cuba’s government has strongly criticised the US measures, arguing that they are contributing to shortages and worsening living conditions.

US officials have rejected that explanation and have pointed to Cuba’s internal economic management as a major cause of the country’s continuing crisis.

Cuba has historically relied on oil imports from allied countries to keep its electricity system operating. Supplies from Venezuela have also played an important role, although those deliveries have been severely disrupted.

The latest nationwide blackout therefore comes as Cuba faces a combination of ageing infrastructure, insufficient fuel supplies, economic hardship and deteriorating access to essential services.

Authorities are continuing efforts to restore electricity across the island, but the frequency of recent grid failures has raised concerns about the country’s ability to maintain a stable power supply in the coming months.