Overview
- State power utility UNE said the national system suffered a “total disconnection” late Sunday, marking the sixth nationwide blackout in 2026 and one of more than a dozen collapses since late 2024.
- Authorities began staged restoration by booting isolated micro‑networks and bringing a few generating units online, but weather‑related disturbances and frequency fluctuations caused further collapses during restart attempts.
- Cuba says tightened U.S. restrictions on oil shipments have sharply limited fuel imports, and reporting shows the single Russian tanker authorized in March has been exhausted, leaving no sizable emergency reserves.
- Independent analysts point to decades‑old thermoelectric plants, chronic maintenance shortfalls and a more than 2,000 megawatt capacity deficit that make the system prone to repeated full‑island failures.
- The outages are disrupting hospitals, water pumping, transport and tourism and forcing residents to sleep outdoors to escape the heat, and experts say stabilizing supply will require immediate fuel and spare parts plus long‑term investment in generation and grid repair.