Havana, Oct 23 (RHC) Shows of solidarity with Cuba are being held in various parts of the world in response to the energy crisis the island is facing and the devastation caused by Hurricane Oscar in the eastern region.

In a statement, the Communist Party of Belarus expressed its full support and solidarity with the Cuban people. The political organization expressed confidence that the Cuban government is taking all necessary measures to overcome the consequences of the incident at the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric power plant as soon as possible.

Similarly, the Communist Party of Ireland reaffirmed its support for Cuba, the government, and people, and recalled that the island was facing an electrical emergency while still enduring the devastating consequences of the illegal US embargo.

For its part, the Association of Friends of Cuba in Slovakia repeated its call on the international community to lift the economic embargo and remove Cuba from its arbitrary and illegal list of states allegedly sponsoring terrorism.

The Association of Cubans in Cyprus also expressed its solidarity with the Caribbean country and stressed that Cuban resilience had been tested many times before.

Likewise, the Articulation of Social Movements towards the ALBA called upon the organizations making up the platform to stay attentive to the evolving situation and denounce the historic and current responsibility of American imperialism.

On Tuesday, a letter published in The New York Times urged President Biden to reverse the aggressive policy of his predecessor Donald Trump towards Cuba during his last 90 days in office.

Cuba is facing a serious energy crisis as the result of the shutdown this October 18 of the Antonio Guiteras thermal power station, and the recent impact of hurricane Oscar. (Source: PL)

Havana, October 22 (RHC) –The President of the National Defense Council, Miguel Díaz-Canel, reported this Monday that the Guantanamo municipalities of Imías and San Antonio del Sur are in a state of emergency due to the severe damage caused by Hurricane Oscar in Cuba.

In statements to national television, the Cuban leader confirmed that Oscar, already downgraded to a tropical storm, claimed the lives of six people in San Antonio del Sur.

Díaz-Canel pointed out that in those two areas there were levels of flooding that have no historical records.

He said that at this time members of the Ministry of the Interior and the Revolutionary Armed Forces are carrying out rescue and salvage operations, and are also assessing the possible damages in territories that remain inaccessible.

Regarding the electrical contingency that the country is going through, he explained that there is a notable progress thanks to the deep, intense work based on the expertise of specialists in the field.

He reported that more than 36 percent of the service has been restored, functioning with stability, and it is expected that this figure will increase in the next few hours.

He indicated that after the restoration of the system in Havana, they are seeking to increase the levels of service in the rest of the eastern provinces.

The president considered that the Caribbean nation will soon overcome the energy emergency, caused by the disconnection of the National Electric System, and will enter a stage of management of the generation deficit caused by the lack of fuel.

He recalled that the tense situation in the sector is due to the intensification of the blockade imposed by the United States and the inclusion of the island in the unilateral list of countries sponsoring terrorism.  (Source: Prensa Latina)

The Havana Electric Company reports that already 261 circuits in Havana have service, which is equivalent to 721 379 customers, 83.6 percent of the total.

Oct 21 (teleSUR) In the midst of a serious energy crisis, Havana has managed to restore electricity service to 83.6 of its customers, according to the Havana Electric Company in the early afternoon. 508MW are reported in service and only 2 hospitals are still to be restored.

On the morning of October 21, the general director of Electricity of the Ministry of Energy and Mines, Lázaro Guerra Hernández, provided an update in the information magazine Buenos días, reporting that in total there are 700 MW served throughout the country.

Guerra pointed out that the western microsystem is more consolidated, with unit number 8 of the Mariel and floating power plants in Havana, such as Mariel and Energás Boca de Jaruco, operating. This has allowed a level of coverage in Havana, Mayabeque and Artemisa.

The central microsystem has more than 200 MW and covers the provinces from Matanzas to Camagüey. “The subsystems have been designed from the beginning of the total system fall and are running,” added the engineer, underlining efforts to consolidate existing microsystems to improve the stability of the power supply.

However, the situation remains fragile and the government is working hard to increase supply to more users, depending on available generation capacities.

Accordingly, the Cuban Government has also presented a new strategy to stabilize SEN by reorganizing electricity generation by regions. This includes the creation of clusters in the west and east of the country as well as in the centre to optimize the operation of thermal units.

President Miguel Díaz-Canel has described the current situation as «exceptional», highlighting the challenges facing the country, including fuel shortages aggravated by the US economic embargo.

“The blockade has led to a lack of stable supplies, preventing the system from functioning normally,” he said, referring to the crisis that has led to the collapse of the National Electricity System (SEN) and frequent disconnections in recent days.

Díaz-Canel also praised the dedication of the electrical workers and the understanding of the people in the situation. However, he made a call to civility, condemning acts of vandalism that have tried to disrupt the city’s tranquility. “The Revolution will not tolerate this kind of behavior,” he emphasized.

Simultaneously, the country is preparing to face tropical storm Oscar, which is slowly advancing over eastern Cuba.

With sustained maximum winds of 85 km/h, the storm is expected to impact local infrastructure, which has led the government to suspend non-essential activities and classes on October 21, 22 and 23. The priority is to ensure the safety of the population and facilitate the recovery of the electrical system.

Additionally, he reiterated that the energy crisis is exacerbated by “the intensification of the blockade against Cuba and our country’s inclusion on the list of state sponsors of terrorism.”

Cuba: 83% of the Electrical Service in Havana is Recovered

Oct 21 (teleSUR) In a recent message to the Cuban people, President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez addressed the ongoing electrical crisis affecting the nation. During his remarks, he highlighted the efforts being made to restore electricity following multiple outages.

“Since last night, after the third disconnection, a thorough analysis of various options and possibilities has been undertaken,” the president stated.

According to Díaz-Canel, thanks to the work of professionals, workers, and engineers within the national electric system, significant progress has been made: “Thirty-six percent of the service has been restored, and in the coming hours, we will continue to increase services to the population.”

_{“More than 36% of the electricity service has been restored, currently operating with stability; steps will be taken further, in the coming hours the service will be increased”.}

The president also emphasized that in Havana, 90 percent of the electrical system has already been restored, and efforts will continue to address issues in other provinces. Additionally, he reiterated that the energy crisis is exacerbated by “the intensification of the blockade against Cuba and our country’s inclusion on the list of state sponsors of terrorism.”

Díaz-Canel stressed the Cuban government’s commitment to facing these challenges and ensuring the well-being of its people.

Rome, 21 October (RHC) The National Association of Italian-Cuban Friendship (ANAIC) has reaffirmed its unconditional solidarity and support for the Cuban people in the face of the complex energy problems that the country is currently facing, according to a press release.

Marco Papacci, president of Anaic, handed over to Prensa Latina a document issued by this organization in which it denounces that the serious situation of the island is mainly a consequence of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States against this nation more than 60 years ago.

ANAIC points out that this measure, which violates human rights and which it describes as criminal and merciless, “affects all sectors of Cuban society and affects the lives of the population on a daily basis”.

“The blockade, which has been condemned more than 30 times by the United Nations General Assembly, is a shameful act that hinders Cuba’s efforts for economic development and the well-being of its citizens, affecting the country in vital sectors such as energy”.

As Italian citizens, we will never forget the contribution of solidarity during the pandemic emergency that brought us to our knees”, nor “the lesson of humanity received from the Cuban health personnel” in the first difficult moments when Covid-19 caused thousands of deaths in this European nation, expressed the members of this association.

ANAIC expresses its full confidence that the Cuban people “will be able to overcome this new challenge” given the current energy situation, and at the same time calls on the international community to support the country in its fight against the US blockade and to demand its immediate lifting.(Source: Prensa Latina)

Minister Vicente de la O Levy expects the country’s electricity supply to be fully restored by Tuesday.

Oct 21 (teleSUR) On Monday, the the state-owned company Union Electrica (UNE) confirmed that around 50 percent of Havana’s residents now have power, nearly 72 hours after the total blackout that affected the entire island.

The UNE also emphasized that its “people are not resting” as they work to restore the National Electric System (SEN) following the “national zero power coverage” event that occurred on Friday, which has only been gradually addressed amid repeated setbacks in recent days.

On Sunday, authorities announced that the current strategy to address this crisis is to reorganize the SEN into three regions to facilitate the startup of different generation units. The goal is to reconnect the SEN as quickly as possible to gradually restore service to the nearly ten million inhabitants of the island.

Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy expects the country’s electricity supply to be fully restored by Tuesday. The first total blackout was recorded last Friday morning, following an unexpected shutdown of the Guiteras thermoelectric plant, one of the largest in the country and considered key to SEN’s stability.

On Saturday, efforts to re-energize and restore the SEN failed again, leading to a second total disconnection. In the final hours of that day, the subsystem created in the western half of the island collapsed, requiring restoration efforts to start over.

The SEN is in a very precarious state due to fuel shortages—stemming from a lack of foreign currency to import it—and frequent breakdowns in the outdated thermoelectric plants, which have been in operation for four decades and suffer from chronic underinvestment.

Blackouts have been common for years, but the situation has worsened in recent weeks. In recent days, maximum disruption rates have exceeded 50 percent, meaning that at times, half of the country was simultaneously without power.

The frequent blackouts are damaging Cuba’s economy, which contracted by 1.9 percent in 2023. A similar zero production situation occurred was in September 2022, after Hurricane Ian passed through the island’s western tip. This caused significant disruptions, and the recovery took several days.

Beijing, 21 October (RHC) Friends of Cuba in China today expressed their support for the island in its current energy crisis and called for the US blockade against the Caribbean nation to be lifted.

In statements to Prensa Latina, Chinese businessman Huang Qiao Ming (Simon) said that the US blockade was unfair and represented a great difficulty for international trade.

However, he expressed the will to find alternatives to overcome this blockade, which is currently an economic and financial war against the largest of the Antilles.

“Trust, unity and technology,” said Simón, referring to the importance of working together and being aware that a better future is possible despite this siege.

For his part, the Chinese film director Yin Dawei rejected the US policy of blockade against Cuba and expressed his firm opposition to this siege.

The audiovisual director said although the North wants to blockade the island, it cannot prevent the Cuban people from interacting with the world.

“The United States has a bad conscience. What they are doing is not right and we are firmly opposed to it,” he added.

Earlier, the Asian giant’s foreign ministry expressed its solidarity with the Cuban people and government, while rejecting the blockade against the largest of the Antilles.

In response to a question from Prensa Latina, spokesman Lin Jian pointed out that according to the principles of the UN Charter and the basic norms of international law, Washington should immediately lift this siege, lift sanctions against Cuba as soon as possible and remove the Caribbean country from the list of state sponsors of terrorism.

“This is in the interest of the United States, of Cuba, of both peoples, it favors regional stability and development, and it is what the broad international community supports,” he added.

He reiterated that China and Cuba are good friends, comrades and brothers, and that Beijing is aware of the difficulties the island is facing at this time.

“We believe that under the strong leadership of the Communist Party of Cuba, the Cuban people will surely overcome this difficult moment and advance their socialist cause,” he said.

The Caribbean nation is currently facing an energy emergency and the national power grid has suffered several blackouts, leaving the country without electricity.

Cuba’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, denounced that a large part of the current emergency has to do with the fact that the island does not have stable fuel supplies to operate the system at full capacity and in a stable manner, due to the US policy of financial persecution. (Source: Prensa Latina)

Oct 19 (teleSUR) The Bolivia’s Government expressed this Saturday its solidarity with Cuba over the blackouts that have occurred in recent hours on the island due to the disconnection of the national grid of the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric, the largest in the country.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Plurinational State of Bolivia expresses its solidarity with the people and the Government of the sister Republic of Cuba, for the energy situation it is experiencing,” states the Bolivia’s governmnet statement.

In addition, the Plurinational state rejected “the plans of ultra-right dissident groups that, from abroad, seek to take advantage of this situation to destabilize the government of President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez and convulse the country”.

The ministry also called on the governments and peoples of the world to insist on compliance with the more than twenty resolutions, adopted in more than two decades at the United Nations, which call for the end of the US trade economic blockade against Cuba.

The diplomatic portfolio stated that the US blockade is the cause of the “anguish and suffering of the Cuban people.”

Cuba face another nationwide blackout this Saturday after the recovery process of the National Electric System (SEN) failed. The SEN collapsed due to a malfunction at the Guiteras thermoelectric plant, one of the country’s main power generators, causing a total power outage.

The member states of the Bolivarian Alliance of the Peoples of Our America-People’s Trade Treaty (ALBA-TCP) also expressed their support for the people and government of Cuba in the face of the current energy crisis, Attributing it to the economic war and sanctions imposed by the US.

In their statement, they denounced the unilateral coercive measures and blockade as cruel and inhuman, stressing that these actions seek to affect the well-being of Cubans.