Cuba begins restoring power after power grid collapses in national blackout

Cuban authorities on Monday reported an island-wide blackout in the country of about 11 million people as its energy and economic crises deepen. Cuba has blamed its problems on the United States’ energy blockade after President Trump in January. warned about tariffs to any country that sells or supplies it with oil.

The Ministry of Energy and Mines observed in X a “total disconnection” of the country’s electrical system and said it was investigating. The ministry later said that some “microsystems” were beginning to operate in several territories, but did not go into further detail.

It was the third major blackout in Cuba in the last four months. The cause was still unknown as of Monday night, Cuban state media said.

President Miguel Díaz-Canel said Friday that the island had not received oil shipments in more than three months and was operating on solar energy, natural gas and thermoelectric plants, and the government has had to postpone surgeries for tens of thousands of people.

A massive blackout more than a week ago affected the west of the island, leaving millions of people without electricity. In 2025, almost exactly a year agothe country suffered a massive blackout in western Cuba.

Cuba has relied heavily on foreign assistance and oil shipments from allies such as Mexico, Russia and Venezuela. But critical oil shipments from Venezuela were halted after the United States attacked the South American country in early January and arrested its then president, Nicolás Maduro.

While Cuba produces 40% of its oil and has been generating its own power, it has not been enough to meet demand as its electrical grid continues to crumble.

William LeoGrande, a professor at American University who has followed Cuba for years, said the country’s energy grid has not been properly maintained and its infrastructure “has far exceeded its normal useful life.”

“The technicians who work on the network are wizards at keeping it running given the shape it is in,” LeoGrande said.

LeoGrande said that if the island drastically reduces consumption and expands renewable energy, it may go a while without oil shipments. “But it would be constant misery for the general population and eventually the economy could collapse completely and then there would be social chaos and probably mass migration,” he said.

In recent days, videos circulating on social media show residents of Havana and other cities banging pots and pans in protest. News themezone Miami reported. The traditional form of public dissent known as “cacerolazo” reflects growing frustration as the country battles power outages, food shortages and deteriorating living conditions.

Blackouts have previously sparked anti-government demonstrations in 2021, 2022 and 2024.

Tomás David Velázquez Felipe, a 61-year-old Havana resident, said the incessant blackouts make him think that Cubans who can should simply pack their bags and leave the island. “The little we have to eat goes to waste,” he said. “Our people are too old to continue suffering.”

On Friday, Díaz-Canel confirmed that Cuba was holding talks with the United States government as the problems continue to go deeper.

Earlier this year, a U.S. official told News themezone that the Trump administration is not seeking to cause a collapse of the Cuban government, but rather to negotiate with Havana to exit its authoritarian communist system.