‘Absolutely no fuel’: Cuba hit by blackouts, protests amid power outages
Al Jazeera • • world
Key Points:
- Cuba is experiencing worsening power outages due to depleted fuel reserves, leading to rare protests in neighborhoods around Havana as the government struggles to secure fuel imports amid US sanctions.
- Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy confirmed the country has no fuel, oil, or diesel left, relying only on limited domestic crude oil and solar energy, resulting in a fragile electrical system.
- President Miguel Diaz-Canel blamed the crisis on a "genocidal energy blockade" by the US, citing a loss of about 1,100 megawatts of power generation and an expected deficit exceeding 2,000 megawatts during peak hours.
- Residents in Havana have protested the blackouts by banging pots and pans and shouting for power restoration, with some areas enduring outages lasting over 19 hours daily.
- The US has offered $100 million in aid to Cuba on the condition that it be distributed through the Catholic Church instead of the government, a proposal to which Cuba has responded with cautious openness.