Steven’s Cuba Blog

Will Hydro-Québec help solve Cuba’s energy woes?

December 29, 2005 at 5:18 pm | In Technology, Current Events |

Over the holidays, I had the opportunity to have dinner with a family friend who used to occupy a rather senior position at Hydro-Québec, one of the world’s premier authorities on hydro-electric power generation and transmission.

After a while, the conversation turned to Cuba (as it does so often with me…), and I was surprised to find out that there were, in fact, high-level discussions going on in the late 80s to build a large network of hydro-electric dams in Cuba. Apparently, these talks have recently been restarted.

Today, nearly all of the nation’s electricity is generated by nine plants, which are running on either oil or gas power. Largely based on ex-USSR technologies, these plants can be costly are difficult to repair as the parts needed are no longer manufactured and must be custom-ordered. The increasing number of blackouts in 2004 and early 2005 testifies to the problem, although recent measures taken by the Cuban state have helped rectify the situation somewhat. Regardless of its uptime, electricity reaches everywhere in Cuba; for better or worse. You find power lines in the most remote locations, and even the tiniest of villages has lights and television.

Despite the fact that Cuba does not have very large rivers, four sites were identified as being favorable to damming; it was asserted that on hydro-electricity alone, Cuba could go a long way towards power self-sufficiency.

The initial project never went through not because of economic or political concerns, but environmental ones. During and after the difficult “periodo especial” which Cuba went through following the fall of the Soviet Union, environmental protection became a huge priority for the state, since manufacturers and producers “could no longer ignore the possibility of a future with very limited resources.”

Because of necessity, conservation, self-sustenance and environmentalism became the keywords of the day. Organic inner-city gardens began sprouting up; 90% (!) of Havana’s fresh produce is from local farms and gardens. The bicycle made a comeback in force - to this day, I can personally attest to the fact that Cuba in general, and Havana specifically, is one of the greatest cities to cycle in. Eco-tourism is taking off all over Cuba, with health spas and uber-specialized health clinics all over the island.

Given the growing sense of eco-responsibility at the time, it didn’t make sense to flood hundreds of square kilometers of land - destroying countless species of flora and fauna that exist only in Cuba - and invest billions in hydro-electricity while nuclear energy was also being invested in (The two nuclear reactors are over 50% complete but are now mothballed).

Nuclear Central, Jurugua, Cuba

However, recent advances in hydro-electric manufacturing and production have allowed damming with minimal effect to the surrounding environment; our growing understanding of ecology also allows gives us more flexibility in gently displacing species - and, soon, entire ecosystems - without destroying them. Consequently, there is fresh interest in large-scale hydro-electric development in Cuba.

Solar, wind and other renewable resources are also high on the list of Cuban researchers and power producers. Regardless of the economic, political and social causes behind it, the truth is that Cuba is now in a very interesting position with regards to the use of renewable energy. The current economic climate leaves Cuba little choice but to slowly consider abandoning fossil fuels, and move on to become one of the first countries in the world to adopt environmentally-friendly, renewable power.