HAVANA, March 17. /TASS/. Power supply in Havana has been restored for more than 18,000 customers following a widespread outage in Cuba, representing 2.1% of the total number of consumers in the capital, according to the Havana branch of the country’s national power supplier.

TASS has compiled the key developments in the situation in the country.

Energy and fuel supplies

- The energy supply situation in Cuba has severely deteriorated as a result of a blockade on fuel shipments caused by unilateral US restrictions.

- Power outages last an average of more than 10 hours.

- The country is experiencing a severe shortage of gasoline and kerosene.

- On March 16, Cuba’s national electricity company reported another failure of the country’s power grid, leaving the entire island without electricity.

- The previous such collapse in Cuba occurred on March 4.

- The Cubadebate website reported, citing Lazaro Guerra Hernandez, Director General of Electricity at the Ministry of Energy and Mines, that the causes of the total blackout of the country’s power grid remain unclear.

- Earlier reports indicated that no malfunctions were detected at the country’s key thermal power plants during the outage.

- According to Guerra Hernandez, critical infrastructure is being prioritized in the country’s efforts to restore power.

- Power has been restored to more than 18,000 customers in Havana, making up 2.1% of the city’s total consumer base, the Havana branch of Cuba’s state electric power company reported.

- Cuba has not received fuel shipments for at least three months, the island nation’s president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, said on March 13 during an appearance on state TV.

- According to him, tens of thousands of people in Cuba are currently waiting for surgeries that cannot be performed due to the energy blockade, many of them children.

Public discontent, government appeal

- Complaints and demands from the public regarding prolonged power outages in Cuba are justified if expressed politely, but the authorities will not tolerate violence or vandalism, said Miguel Diaz-Canel.

- On March 14, Cuba’s Interior Ministry posted an article from the newspaper El Invasor, published in the province of Ciego de Avila, on its Facebook page.

- It said that overnight into Saturday, a group of people marched through the streets of the provincial city of Moron.

- The participants were mainly protesting against problems with electricity supply and access to food, the newspaper reported.

- After an exchange with local authorities, the protests escalated into acts of vandalism targeting the headquarters of the municipal committee of the Cuban Communist Party, the newspaper said.

- According to the article, a small group of people pelted the building’s entrance with stones and set the street on fire, destroying furniture from the building’s reception area.

- The report said that five people were detained as a result of the incident, while another individual, who was under the influence of alcohol, was injured and hospitalized.

- Specialized units of the Cuban Interior Ministry are continuing their investigation to determine the circumstances of the incident, the newspaper El Invasor reported.

US goals

- The administration of US President Donald Trump intends to secure the removal of Miguel Diaz-Canel from his post as Cuba’s leader, The New York Times reported, citing sources.

- According to the newspaper, removing the current Cuban president would allow for structural changes in the country’s economy, opening up opportunities for American companies.

- The White House chief is not yet insisting on actions against the Cuban leader and his family, the report noted.

- Earlier, Trump said at a White House press conference that he would have the honor of taking Cuba.

- However, according to The New York Times, the US president does not aim to change the country’s political system.

- Trump seeks to subjugate the regime, which is impossible under the leadership of "hardliner" Miguel Diaz-Canel and his administration, the newspaper said.