Cuba Suffers Nationwide Blackout amid Energy Crisis
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Cuba was plunged into darkness on Friday as a nationwide power outage left the entire island without electricity, affecting more than 10 million people.
The Antonio Guiteras power plant, one of Cuba's largest, experienced a critical failure in Matanzas province, triggering a complete breakdown of the country’s electrical grid just before midday. The outage follows days of rolling blackouts across the island.
Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz attributed the crisis to aging infrastructure and fuel shortages exacerbated by Hurricane Milton, which has disrupted fuel deliveries. In a televised address on Thursday night, Marrero Cruz assured citizens that restoring power to residential areas would be a priority, with new fuel shipments expected to arrive in the coming days.
Friday's blackout intensified concerns as it marked the most severe power disruption Cuba has faced in over two years. Officials reported that 1.64 gigawatts of electricity—about half of the country’s peak demand—went offline. In response, the government introduced emergency measures, suspending classes, halting operations at state-run workplaces, and canceling non-essential services to reduce electricity demand.
“We have to say with all transparency that we had to paralyze all fundamental entities of the economy to provide a minimum of electricity to the population," Marrero Cruz stated. Public schools have been closed until Monday, and only state enterprises offering “vital” services are permitted to operate during the crisis.
Authorities have not provided a clear timeline for when the power grid will be fully restored. The prolonged outage adds to Cuba's ongoing economic challenges, which include the impact of the US embargo and widespread food shortages.
Residents have grown increasingly anxious as they endure the blackout. On Thursday night, many Cubans closed windows they usually leave open and relied on candles or lanterns for light. With no immediate solution in sight by Friday night, uncertainty continues to loom over the island.
Prolonged power outages have previously disrupted essential services such as water supply, further compounding difficulties.
