The “Antonio Guiteras” thermoelectric plant in Matanzas, the largest in Cuba, will have to stop its operation for a few days to make some “corrections,” as announced by its directors. This measure comes just a month after the plant was undergoing repairs and was paralyzed for some time.
The decision to pause operations comes after unit 1 of Felton, in Holguín, which is currently under repair, is connected to the national electroenergy system (SEN).
Engineer Román Pérez Castañeda, technical director of the Matanzas plant, explained to journalist José Miguel Solís from Radio Rebelde, that the “scheduled stoppage” of the “Antonio Guiteras” should not last more than 72 hours and will depend on the situation of the SEN.
“The goal is to ensure that the power plant can operate without problems at the end of this year and the beginning of next year,” Pérez said. He also reported that capital maintenance of the thermoelectric plant will be carried out by October 2024, which will involve a million-dollar investment and deep intervention in the boiler and other components.
It is hoped that with these maintenance efforts, the plant can generate about 280 megawatts with low fuel consumption for 90 days in a row. However, this news suggests that Cubans may continue to endure blackouts into the year 2024.
At present, in Cuba, several other thermal power plants are out of service due to breakdowns or are currently under maintenance. Additionally, 31 plants are not operating due to a lack of fuel, and there are another 15 Cuban plants with low liquid coverage.
The latest report from the Electric Company, on December 5, forecast a nighttime deficit of 327 MW in the country, resulting in repeated power outages. With ongoing maintenance and repair issues at multiple power plants, it seems that Cuba will continue to struggle with electricity shortages in the near future.