Cuba plunges into darkness as energy crisis escalates

Cuba faced a significant energy crisis as the nation experienced a total blackout on September 10, 2025. This incident marked the second island-wide outage of the year and continued a troubling trend of outages that began with three prior blackouts reported late last year. Authorities attributed the widespread power failure to failures in aging infrastructure and ongoing fuel shortages affecting thermoelectric power plants. The Cuban Ministry of Energy and Mines reported that one of the country's largest thermoelectric plants underwent a malfunction, which directly contributed to the outage and forced officials to respond quickly. In response to the crisis, the Ministry announced their plans to develop a microsystem designed to provide electricity to essential services, such as hospitals and food production facilities. Crews were deployed to restore power as quickly as possible to critical areas and prioritize the needs of approximately 10 million residents living on the island. These measures included gradual power restoration, according to Prime Minister Manuel Marrero, who reassured citizens on state television about efforts to mitigate the situation. Residents across the island demonstrated concern over the length and frequency of blackouts, with many expressing anxiety about the potential loss of perishable food items stored in refrigerators and freezers lying idle during outages. People in Havana, the capital city, felt the impact of the blackout acutely, as traffic lights remained dark and social activities were suspended. While some residents sought to gather necessities before the darkness fully settled, others reflected on the increased challenges posed by unreliable energy. The struggles that have continued to plague Cuba's energy sector stem from long-standing issues regarding sanctions applied by the United States, which have hindered Cuba's ability to secure essential foreign currency to purchase necessary fuel or repair supplies for outdated energy infrastructure. Recent months have seen a notable increase in self-sufficiency efforts among wealthier individuals and entrepreneurs, driving them to install solar panels and other renewable energy sources to mitigate reliance on the state's power grid. Nevertheless, the ongoing energy crisis continues to cast a long shadow on daily life in Cuba.