Cuba exceeds
electricity generation tenfold since 1959
HAVANA.—The triumph of the Cuban Revolution in
1959 made it possible to initiate a transformation
of the electricity system of the country, which
currently generates tenfold the power existing then.
During
the cancellation of an allegorical stamp in the
capital marking Electrical Workers Day, Ramón López
Ramos, commercial director of the National
Electrical Union (UNE), emphasized the leading role
of the 48,500-plus workers in the sector.
He noted that, under the leadership of Comandante
en Jefe Fidel Castro countless investments were
made, making it possible to reach the current
generation of more than 4,000 megawatts of power.
This figure is tenfold that of the 475 megawatts
installed in the country by the Cuban Electricity
Company, according to data published in the Energy
Statistics of the Revolution for the period
1959-2008.
López Ramos recalled that prior to 1959, only 60%
of the population had access to this service,
currently available to more than 96% of families.
To this can be added the use of different sources
of energy: photovoltaic, eolian, hydraulic and
sugarcane biomass.
Figures provided by the National Statistics and
Information Office indicate that from 1998, the
country began to generate electricity with
accompanying gas from oil wells (ENERGAS).
The revitalization of the sector was intensified
in 2005 with the Energy Revolution program, which
established banks of generators throughout the
country to maintain high supply levels from the
National Generation System (SEN) and to support the
operation of thermoelectric plants. (AIN)
