Cuba suffers fourth nationwide power outage in a month

Cuba's state electricity company announced on Thursday a complete collapse of the national power grid, plunging the island of around 10 million people into a total blackout for the fourth time in a month.

The Cuban Electric Union did not provide further details on the cause of the latest outage, only confirming the disruption without specifying its nature or how long repairs might take.

This incident follows three previous nationwide blackouts in July, the most recent of which occurred on July 14, highlighting the fragility of the country's energy infrastructure.

Structural crisis in Cuba's energy sector

The Ministry of Energy had previously described a "total disconnection of the electrical system" on social media, underscoring the severity of the crisis facing the national grid.

Cuba is grappling with a severe structural crisis in its energy sector. A longstanding US oil embargo has crippled the island's aging and poorly maintained infrastructure.

Former US President Donald Trump imposed an oil embargo on Cuba in January, following political developments in Venezuela. Venezuela had been Cuba's main fuel supplier. US pressure also prompted Mexico to halt oil shipments to the island, further worsening the crisis and making it increasingly difficult for residents to meet their basic energy needs.