Cuba hit by widespread blackout; Ecuador expels Havana’s ambassador, staff

Al JazeeraEN 2 min read 100% complete by Al Jazeera StaffMarch 5, 2026 at 02:33 AM

AI Summary

medium article 2 min

On Wednesday, March 5, 2026, Cuba experienced a widespread power outage affecting two-thirds of the country, including Havana. The state electric utility, UNE, attributed the blackout to a fault at the Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant, impacting electricity supply from Pinar del Rio to Las Tunas. The outage briefly interrupted Cuban state TV broadcasts. This occurred amidst already existing issues with Cuba's electricity generation system, where daily power outages are common due to fuel shortages. Simultaneously, Ecuador expelled Cuba's Ambassador Basilio Gutierrez and his diplomatic staff from Quito, further straining relations between the two nations. The article suggests the United States' attempts to curtail oil shipments to Cuba may be exacerbating the country's energy crisis.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Las Tunas 30% Pinar del Rio 30% Cubadebate 40% UNE 40% Donald Trump 50% Antonio Guiteras thermoelectric plant 50% Basilio Gutierrez 60% United States ×270% Ecuador ×270% Havana ×480% Cuba ×690%

Keywords

cuba 100% blackout 90% power outage 80% ecuador 70% diplomatic relations 60% fuel blockade 60% oil shipments 50% united states 50% thermoelectric plant 40% havana 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Negative

Score: -0.30

Source Transparency

Source

Al Jazeera

Classification Confidence

90%

Geographic Perspective

Cuba

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis.

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cuba blackout power outage ecuador diplomatic relations fuel blockade oil shipments united states thermoelectric plant havana

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