Cuba goes dark: Major power plant failure leads to nationwide blackout
Cubaʼs biggest power station stopped working in early-morning hours causing a massive blackout across the island. Government officials are trying to fix the problem while most of the 10-million population stays without power
The Antonio-Guiteras power station (Cubas largest energy producer) shut down around 2am today leaving millions without electricity. The governmentʼs energy department says theyʼre working on fixing the system-wide collapse
The islands capital Havana is mostly dark with only a few govt buildings and big-name hotels showing any signs of light. Social-media posts hint at a nation-wide blackout but officials havent confirmed how far the outage reaches
This years power problems come from several directions - old power stations that need fixing oil supply issues from Venezuela Russia and Mexico; plus two hurricanes (Oscar and Rafael) that hit the Caribbean island in fall. The aging oil-based power system just cant keep up with demand: its been having trouble since early-2024
- Previous blackouts happened in Oct after Hurricane Oscar hit east Cuba
- Another outage came in Nov when Rafael passed nearby
- The power grid serves about 10-million people across the island
The current situation shows how Cubaʼs power system - which depends on foreign oil deliveries and old equipment - keeps having problems. Most streets in Havana are pitch-black tonight (except for some spots where backup generators work)
