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Blackouts have been a regular feature in Cuba for decades. But in recent months, the problem has escalated 鈥� lasting longer and occurring more frequently. Here鈥檚 a look at the factors driving outages on the island.

Why so many blackouts recently?

In October, millions of Cubans were left in the dark for several days after a major power plant failed. But even as electricity started returning to some areas of the country, it soon went out again when another 鈥渢otal outage鈥� hit the national power grid, according to Cuba鈥檚 state-owned Electrical Union. At one point, the grid collapsed four times in a span of 48 hours. Next came two hurricanes in a matter of weeks, knocking out power nationwide once more. Many in western Cuba are still waiting for power to return post-Hurricane Rafael, and some eastern provinces have reported up to 20 hours a day without power this week.

The power plants, built almost entirely in the 1960s and 鈥�70s, burn high-sulfur fuel, which is more damaging to condensers and boilers, says Jorge Pi帽on, a nonresident fellow at the Energy Institute at the University of Texas at Austin.

Mr. Pi帽on likens the system to the iconic almendrones, the 1950s-era American-made cars still rolling down Cuban streets. 鈥淛ust like your automobile, [power plants] need two things: operational maintenance and capital maintenance,鈥� he says. Such maintenance hasn鈥檛 happened for decades, which means 鈥渢he infrastructure is broken, and the only option is short-term Band-Aid solutions鈥� that are increasingly faltering. At this point, 鈥渞eplacing the tires鈥� and expecting to race in the Formula One in this analogy is too late, he says.

How did Cuba get here?

The nation鈥檚 electrical system 鈥渟uffers from the same problem as the rest of the economy: chronic lack of investment,鈥� says Sebasti谩n Arcos, interim director at the Cuban Research Institute at Florida International University. He adds that the government has made investing in tourism and hotel construction a bigger priority in recent years than investing in its grid.

Blackouts occurred regularly in the 1990s after the fall of the Soviet Union, which had bolstered Cuba鈥檚 economy. In 1999, when Hugo Ch谩vez rose to power in Venezuela, his government took care of providing fuel to Cuba at preferential prices, and the blackouts dissipated. But even as the quantity of oil imports has fallen for cash-strapped Cuba, 鈥淣ow it鈥檚 not a question of fuel but generating capacity. The plants are crumbling,鈥� says Mr. Arcos.

The U.S. embargo, now over 60 years old, also plays a role. It has limited who can trade with or invest in Cuba and how. It鈥檚 where Cuba鈥檚 government places the blame for the blackouts 鈥� and for most other economic issues haunting the island.

Although Prime Minister Manuel Marrero said in October that the main factors affecting electricity generation are 鈥渢he state of the infrastructure, the lack of fuel, and the increase in demand,鈥� President Miguel D铆az-Canel was more blunt. The main cause is the 鈥渆conomic war鈥� and the 鈥渇inancial and energy persecution of the United States鈥� against Cuba, he said, adding that it is 鈥渄ifficult to import fuel and other necessary resources for the industry.鈥�

Many observers suspect that the grid situation could become more difficult under the new leadership of President-elect Donald Trump, who during his first term redesignated Cuba as a 鈥渟tate sponsor of terrorism鈥� and reintroduced travel and business restrictions that had been lifted under the Obama administration.

How are Cubans managing?

Electricity failure affects access to clean water and the ability to store food. Cubans are already living through an economic crisis that has impacted the cost of basic goods, and the loss of precious food due to blackouts has left them scrambling.

Some street protests broke out over the recent blackouts, with the Cuban government announcing arrests in early November. But demonstrations haven鈥檛 grown to the level of July 2021, when Cuba saw some of the biggest protests 鈥� and government crackdowns 鈥� in decades over food shortages and postpandemic economic frustrations. Hundreds of people were jailed, making many Cubans fearful of protesting again, says Mr. Arcos.

Are other sources of power possible?

The grid鈥檚 problems present new opportunities, says Korey Silverman-Roati, a senior fellow at the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University. He co-authored a report on Cuba鈥檚 energy system, and the findings include the potential to capitalize on solar and wind power.

Although Cuba has acknowledged an interest in moving toward renewable energy, few 鈥� if any 鈥� notable strides have been made. And yet, solar energy could be distributed to the grid 鈥渋n a way that doesn鈥檛 require revamping the entire transmission and generation infrastructure,鈥� Mr. Silverman-Roati notes. 鈥淭here are opportunities for renewables to plug in.鈥�