The Antonio Guiteras power plant successfully reconnected to the National Electric System (NES) at 6:03 a.m. on Sunday after being offline for four days due to a malfunction.
According to the Electric Union (UNE), the Matanzas-based facility is now operational and ramping up its load, allowing for the recovery of approximately 200 megawatts of power generation.
"6:03 a.m., Antonio Guiteras Power Plant is online, in the process of progressively increasing loads. Thermal block returns to Base Generation after resolving the fault. 200 MW recovered," stated the announcement on Facebook.
Officials had initially predicted that the plant would be operational by Saturday night, but it wasn't until Sunday morning that the facility was able to come online.
The Guiteras plant, the largest electricity-generating unit in the country, had been undergoing repairs since Wednesday when it unexpectedly went offline, causing widespread blackouts across the nation.
A Saturday update indicated that technical work was progressing and the recovery process was in its final stage, though the plant was not restored as initially scheduled.
The previous Wednesday, a failure at the Guiteras plant led to the NES disconnection from Camagüey to Pinar del Río, as reported by the UNE.
Initially, the repairs were expected to take at least 72 hours.
Román Pérez Castañeda, the plant's technical director, explained that a broken pipe in the lower boiler area caused a water leak, a loss of gas seal integrity, and a fire that was swiftly extinguished by the Fire Department, with no significant additional damages reported.
The UNE emphasized that the national electric system's recovery process would proceed gradually, following technical protocols aimed at resynchronizing power plants and restoring the country's electrical network.
This latest issue with the Guiteras plant arises amid a severe energy crisis that has left much of the nation experiencing extended blackouts.
Compounding the problem is the fact that the electric system has been operating with a significant generation deficit, necessitating power cuts in numerous provinces.
This situation is indicative of years of technical deficiencies, lack of investment, and inadequate maintenance, which have rendered the NES highly susceptible to any malfunction.
Understanding Cuba's Energy Challenges
What caused the recent outage at the Antonio Guiteras power plant?
A pipe break in the lower boiler area led to a water leak, gas seal loss, and a fire, which was quickly controlled by the Fire Department.
How much power generation was restored after the repair?
The repair allowed for the recovery of approximately 200 megawatts of power generation.
Why is Cuba's electric system facing challenges?
The system's vulnerability is due to years of technical deficiencies, insufficient investment, and poor maintenance.