Cuba’s Ministry of Energy and Mines has announced that eight new
solar parks will be operational by March 2025, utilizing Chinese
technology. These facilities will generate over 170 megawatts,
helping to address the ongoing energy crisis that has plagued the
island with frequent blackouts, Azernews reports, citing the Rio
Times.

Officials aim to establish 92 solar parks by 2028, targeting
2,000 megawatts of capacity to transform the country’s grid, which
is heavily reliant on fossil fuels. This ambitious plan is
unfolding amid severe energy shortages, with Cuba experiencing
power outages that can last up to 20 hours a day.

Cuba’s aging thermoelectric plants, which consume 8 million tons
of fuel annually but only produce 3 million tons domestically, are
struggling to keep up. Imports to meet the deficit drain scarce
financial resources, a situation worsened by the U.S. embargo,
which limits the country’s access to necessary resources.

Progress is accelerating, with six new solar parks adding 131.2
megawatts this month alone. Two parks in Havana and Cienfuegos were
completed in February, and four more storage facilities, each with
50 megawatts of capacity, have been added to help balance the
variability of solar energy, ensuring greater stability for the
grid.

Experts point out that Cuba’s abundant sunshine, wind, and
biomass resources are key advantages in this energy transition. The
government is also committed to expanding solar capacity, planning
to install three to four parks per province, with an eye on
achieving a 24% share of renewable energy by 2030.

At present, Cuba has reached a milestone of 1,000 megawatts of
renewable capacity, representing 8% of the country’s energy needs.
Looking forward, there are hopes for greater energy independence,
with plans to tap into local oil and gas resources. However,
officials acknowledge that maintaining and upgrading the country’s
old thermoelectric plants will remain critical to ensuring a
reliable energy supply.

This ambitious shift towards renewable energy represents not
just an effort to address Cuba’s immediate energy crisis, but also
a long-term strategy for reducing its dependence on imports and
fossil fuels. The success of this transition could have
far-reaching implications for the island’s economic future and its
ability to navigate both domestic challenges and international
tensions.