Cuba's national power grid collapses again after nationwide blackout

Cuba's national power grid collapses again after nationwide blackout
A man rides a bicycle while crossing a street as Cuba's national grid collapsed on Sunday, the fourth nationwide grid failure in less than a month, in Havana, Cuba, 3 August 2026.
Reuters

Cuba's national electricity grid collapsed for a second time on Monday, dealing another blow to efforts to restore power after a nationwide blackout left millions without electricity the previous night.

State media said technicians had been making progress in reconnecting the system before a new failure brought the grid down once again.

"Despite the progress made today, an oscillation triggered the collapse," said Lázaro Manuel Alonso, news director of Cuban state television, in a post on social media.

Energy crisis deepens

The latest outage is the latest sign of Cuba's deepening energy crisis, with nationwide blackouts becoming increasingly common as the island struggles with ageing infrastructure, fuel shortages and falling oil imports.

A man walks on a sidewalk after Cuba's national grid collapsed on Sunday, the fourth nationwide grid failure in less than a month, in Havana, Cuba, 3 Augus 2026.
Reuters

Three major power failures struck the country within nine days in July, before Sunday's blackout plunged much of the island's 10 million residents into darkness.

Havana says decades of U.S. sanctions have restricted access to fuel, spare parts and investment needed to modernise its electricity network.

The situation has worsened since Venezuela, once Cuba's main oil supplier, sharply reduced shipments, while Mexico has also halted exports following increased pressure from Washington.

The United States, however, blames the repeated blackouts on years of economic mismanagement and underinvestment by Cuba's state-run system.

With no timetable for a full restoration of electricity, many Cubans continue to face prolonged disruption as authorities work to stabilise the fragile grid.

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