Published
16/02/2026 às 20:38
Updated
16/02/2026 às 20:39
Cuba expands its use of solar energy amid oil shortages and blackouts. Havana residents are turning to coal and solar panels to cope with power cuts.
A solar energy It began to gain ground in Cuba at a time of desperation. With oil becoming increasingly scarce and power outages With power outages lasting up to 12 hours a day, Havana residents have been searching for any alternative that allows them to cook, light their homes, and keep basic equipment running.
At the same time, the blockade imposed by the United States, which threatens to punish countries that supply fuel to the island, has further aggravated the situation.
As a result, the population began stockpiling coal, using electric motorcycles and, whenever possible, investing in solar panels. solar energy.
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Coal returns to the streets as the power disappears.
On a road in the southeastern outskirts of the capital, vendors began offering charcoal directly on the asphalt.
Homemade stoves share space with stacked black bags. Some of these stoves are made from old washing machine drums. Others are more elaborate.
“Everyone knows what’s coming next. We don’t have fuel in the country, we need to look for alternatives,” Niurbis Lamothe, a 53-year-old civil servant, told AFP after buying a charcoal stove.
Merchant Yurisnel Agosto, 36, confirmed that he has never sold so much charcoal. Before, pizzerias and restaurants were his main customers. Now, entire families buy bags for domestic use.
“People come and buy three bags to prepare for when there’s no electricity,” he said, as he stacked the produce by the roadside.
Meanwhile, power outages are becoming more frequent and longer. Many regions are experiencing 10 to 12 hours a day without electricity. This scenario forces the population to seek urgent alternatives, which further strengthens the interest in… solar energy.
Solar panels offer hope amid collapse.
Since 2024, companies that install systems of solar energy They multiplied in Cuba. The government facilitated the importation of equipment, which accelerated the sector’s growth.
“People are desperate to get a solution,” Reinier Hernández, 42, owner of a private installation company, told AFP. According to him, demand has grown explosively.
Since mid-January, there has been almost no rest. Phone calls, quotes, and client visits fill the entire day.
“For the past two weeks, I haven’t rested,” said Orley Estrada, 30, a team leader. “Sometimes I got home at one in the morning,” he stated, while customers continue to call non-stop.
The church is also investing in solar energy to maintain meals.
In the Guanabacoa neighborhood, in eastern Havana, the solar energy It also reached a nursing home run by the Catholic Church. On the roof, workers are installing 12 solar panels.
With the system, it will be possible to prepare meals for about 80 people. “Without electricity, we had no other option,” Sister Gertrudis Abreu explained to AFP. To make the project viable, it was necessary to raise about $7, almost R$37, in donations.
The Cuban economy is projected to shrink by about 5% by 2025, according to the Center for Studies of the Cuban Economy.
Furthermore, the country is already facing shortages of food, medicine, and fuel. The US embargo, in effect for over 60 years, is now compounded by the oil crisis, exacerbated after the fall of Nicolás Maduro, who supplied fuel through Venezuela.
Without enough oil, Cuba tries to stay afloat with coal, improvisation and, increasingly, solar energy.
