Cuba’s national electricity grid experienced a total failure on March 16, as reported by the state utility Unión Eléctrica, leaving the entire island without power amid a significant fuel crisis.
The utility announced that “protocols for system restoration are starting to be activated” but did not specify when electricity would be restored.
This complete grid failure marks the most serious disruption to an electricity system already strained by decreasing petroleum supplies. Frequent blackouts affecting up to 70% of the country during peak times had become common in recent weeks, with residents in various provinces facing outages lasting as long as 20 hours each day.
Cuba has not received any oil shipments in over three months, largely due to a de facto US fuel embargo. For over two decades, Venezuela provided the majority of Cuba’s petroleum until a January 3 US operation led to President Nicolás Maduro’s capture, disrupting subsidized oil deliveries to Havana.
On January 29, President Donald Trump issued an executive order labeling Cuba an “unusual and extraordinary threat” to US national security, threatening punitive measures against any nations supplying oil to the island. This led Mexico, another critical oil supplier, to stop its deliveries for fear of US repercussions.
While the island generates about 40% of its oil domestically, it relies on imported oil to satisfy energy demands, as electricity generation largely depends on outdated Soviet-era oil-fired power plants.
On March 15, Trump stated to reporters on Air Force One that an agreement with Cuba could soon be achieved. “Cuba is also interested in making a deal, and I believe we will make a deal soon or take other necessary actions,” he remarked.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel confirmed last week that officials had engaged in discussions with US representatives aimed at resolving differences through dialogue, marking the first public acknowledgment of such talks between the two governments.
The nationwide blackout occurs amidst increasing social unrest. Over the weekend, demonstrators in the central city of Morón attacked a provincial Communist Party building, setting it on fire in response to skyrocketing food prices and ongoing power outages.