Havana, August 24 (RHC)--Faced with a complex situation in power generation, Cuba's strategy contemplates the recovery of capacities and investments, informed the Minister of Energy and Mines, Liván Arronte.

 The Minister explained in the television program Mesa Redonda on Wednesday that before the end of the year, they plan to restore 489 megawatts (MW) of power, which are not available due to technological limitations in thermal power plants (291 MW) and in distributed generation (198 MW).

By the end of December, measures are underway to incorporate 531 MW through the execution of new investments.

Arronte specified that the country allocated financing to fulfill this program. However, the recovery from the current difficult situation will be gradual, he added.

"The most important thing is that we are not at a standstill," he assured and added that materializing what has been designed takes time and material resources, most of which require imports, even the parts and pieces that are manufactured in the national territory since the raw materials for their manufacture must be brought from abroad.

Some of these resources are already in the process of being imported, said Arronte, who recalled how expensive it is to maintain the electrical system due to the large amounts of money required for its operation and maintenance, and the high price of fuel and annual investments, in an industry that operates 24 hours a day, every day.

Cuba is highly dependent on thermal generation for electricity production, so the breakdowns and maintenance in its 20 units destined for this function have caused significant instability in the service in the last few months.

Currently, four power plants are affected, among them some of the most important ones in the contribution to the national electric power system.

In addition, there are problems in the acquisition of fuel due to high prices and the lack of financial resources, as well as the obstacles imposed by the U.S. economic blockade against the island.