Nationwide Blackout Leaves Millions Without Power in Cuba

Millions of residents across Cuba were left without electricity on Wednesday after a widespread blackout struck the capital, Havana, and several western regions, highlighting the island’s deepening energy crisis.

The outage affected areas from Pinar del Río in the west to Camagüey in central Cuba, according to the state electricity utility. Authorities said the disruption was triggered by a shutdown at the Antonio Guiteras Thermoelectric Power Plant, one of the country’s largest power plants.

State media reported that the facility was forced offline after a pipe burst in its boiler, causing a water leak and a small fire that was later extinguished. Engineers are working to locate the fault and restore operations, a process officials say could take up to 72 hours.

Energy and Mines Minister Vicente de la O Levy said the government had begun restoring electricity gradually while prioritizing critical infrastructure such as hospitals and medical facilities.

By late Wednesday, authorities said power had been restored to about 2.5 percent of customers in Havana, roughly 21,000 households.

Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz expressed confidence that power workers would overcome the crisis quickly, praising their efforts to restore the national grid.

The blackout comes as Cuba faces severe fuel shortages and a deteriorating electricity system. The situation has worsened since the United States increased pressure on the island’s energy supplies. In January, Donald Trump threatened tariffs on countries supplying oil to Cuba, following disruptions to shipments from Venezuela.

The U.S. Embassy in Cuba warned residents to prepare for prolonged disruptions and conserve essential supplies such as fuel, water, food and phone batteries as outages continue to affect daily life across the island.