Americas — 2026-05-15

Cuba Power Grid Collapses as Fuel Runs Out, Triggering Havana Protests

BLUFWith reserves at zero and the lone resupply tanker stalled mid-Atlantic, a second nationwide grid collapse is likely within 30 days of the May 14 failure absent outside intervention.

Cuba's national power grid suffered a partial collapse early Thursday, state grid operator UNE confirmed, severing power to all eastern provinces from Guantánamo to Ciego de Ávila. The failure came hours after Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy told state television that Cuba had completely exhausted its fuel oil and diesel. AP journalists observed residents banging pots and pans and burning trash cans in multiple Havana neighborhoods Wednesday evening; AFP reported similar protests across the capital, including chants of "Turn on the lights!" in the Playa district. Blackouts in Havana stretched to 24 consecutive hours Thursday, AP reported, and Russian press reports cited by AP indicated a second Russian fuel tanker has been stationary in the Atlantic since departing the Baltic in January.

Analysis
Cuba exhausted its entire fuel oil and diesel inventory as of Wednesday, and the only scheduled resupply shipment (a Russian tanker that departed the Baltic in January) has sat motionless in the Atlantic for weeks with no confirmed arrival date, leaving the grid without a credible near-term fuel source. A second full collapse of the national power grid is likely within 30 days of the May 14 failure. Confidence in this judgment is high, grounded in the minister's on-record admission of zero reserves, documented tanker paralysis, sanctions-driven cutoffs by Venezuela and Mexico, and a structural generation deficit exceeding 2,000 megawatts at peak demand. Seven prior nationwide outages since 2024 establish a pattern in which partial restoration follows collapse without durable fuel resupply, making recurrence the default trajectory absent an extraordinary outside intervention.

4 sources

Cuba hit by blackouts, protests amid power outages - Al Jazeera
Cuba's power grid collapses and plunges eastern provinces into a major blackout - NPR / Associated Press
Cuba says oil reserves have 'run out' as blackouts, fuel shortages spark protests - France 24
Cuba suffers partial grid failure hours after minister reveals country out of fuel oil, diesel - CBC News