Cuba Reports Issues With Repairing Power Plant Previously Updated By General Electric After Purchasing Divisions Of Alstom
/CubaHeadlines (25 April 2026)
“Vicente de la O Levy, Cuba's Minister of Energy and Mines, criticized the United States on Wednesday during a segment on Cuban television's Mesa Redonda, accusing the U.S. of directly hindering repair efforts at several of the country's power plants. “We had to complete the repair of Céspedes Four (a power plant generation unit) without the necessary software because the United States denied us access to the application needed to fine-tune and start the unit.” The minister attributed Cuba's energy crisis to the U.S. embargo, highlighting the island's technological vulnerabilities and its reliance on international resources and services to maintain electric generation.
Internal Solutions and Technological Challenges
In the case of the Carlos Manuel de Céspedes power plant in Cienfuegos, the minister highlighted the resort to domestic solutions, involving multiple state entities. “We had to collaborate with the military industry, the Ministry of Industry, colleagues from the Electronics Group, and the Electrical Union to come up with a national solution. It was time-consuming due to the complexity of the technologies,” he detailed, emphasizing the improvisation that often serves as a response to Cuba's structural deficiencies.
Technical and Logistical Hurdles
The minister also addressed issues at the Antonio Guiteras power plant, one of Cuba's most significant facilities. He pointed out that following the acquisition of companies in the U.S. linked to the plant's construction, new technical and logistical challenges have emerged. He further alleged that foreign technical staff have been withdrawn amid ongoing work at other plants due to presumed U.S. pressure. “Technicians who were actively engaged in units like Felton received phone calls, packed up their toolkits, and left,” he recounted, highlighting the instability in international technical support.”
The Lidio Ramón Pérez Thermoelectric Power Plant (CTE) is located in the town of Felton located in the municipality of Mayari in Holguín Province, Republic of Cuba.
Beginning in December 2017, then Boston, Massachusetts-based General Electric (2017 revenue approximately US$1118 billion), which has since divided into three publicly-held companies, including Cambridge, Massachusetts-based energy-focused General Vernova (2025 revenue approximately US$38 billion) delivered from the United States to the Republic of Cuba “parts for steam turbines” valued at more than US$21 million. Some of the parts traveled from Atlanta, Georgia, to Port Everglades, Florida, then to Port Mariel in the Republic of Cuba. GE is the largest (by revenue) United States-based industrial company to have engaged with the Republic of Cuba. Although GE has not issued a media release relating to the project in the Republic of Cuba, in 2017 the government of the Republic of Cuba confirmed in a PowerPoint presentation used by the Embassy of the Republic of Cuba in Washington DC that the company was providing parts and equipment for a power plant. The total value of the project has not been reported. The Obama Administration first authorized the transactions by GE as primarily advancing benefit to the citizens of the Republic of Cuba rather than to the government of the Republic of Cuba. This type of transaction was and remains licensable (general or specific) through the OFAC and BIS. In November 2015, GE purchased for approximately US$10.6 billion the power and grid division of Paris, France-based Alstom (2018 revenues approximately US$8 billion). In 2016, GE commenced a power generation project in the Republic of Cuba resulting, in part, from a relationship between Alstom and the Republic of Cuba prior to the 2015 acquisition by GE of the power and grid division of Alstom, which had exported products to the Republic of Cuba. On 31 March 1971, GE certified a claim against the Republic of Cuba in the amount of US$5,870,436.86 through the United States Foreign Claims Settlement Commission (USFCSC) within the United States Department of Justice. Interest accrued at 6% per annum from the respective date(s) of loss to the date of settlement.
Economic Eye On Cuba
28 March 2005
ALSTOM OF FRANCE RENOVATING POWER PLANT- Paris, France-based Alstom, (2001 revenues approximately US$20 billion) is the contractor for a US$25 million overhaul of the Antonio Guitereas thermoelectric plant in Matanzas Province, 100 kilometers east of the city of Havana. The plant is being adapted to use Republic of Cuba-produced high sulfur oil. Alstom S.A., considered to be the world’s second-largest power turbine manufacturer, is one of the non-Republic of Cuba-based companies to participate in a plan valued in the hundreds of millions of U.S. Dollars to make the Republic of Cuba energy independent. The plan includes US$167 million to modernize eleven then-U.S.S.R.-constructed 100-megawatt generators and three then-Czechoslovakia-built 125-megawatt generators. The 330-megawatt Antonio Guitereas plant, opened in 1988, is the final plant to be adapted to burn local fuel and was the country’s largest until the 500-megawatt Felton thermoelectric plant located in Mayari, Holguin Province (734 kilometers northeast of the city of Havana) became fully operational in 2001. The 330-megawatt facility has a capacity to burn more than 3 million barrels of oil annually. Alstom, which “supplies equipment, systems, and services in the energy, transmission and distribution, transport, industrial, marine, and local contracting markets,” has reported the following subsidiary activity with respect to the Republic of Cuba:
Alstom Subsidiary and Location Of Republic Of Cuba Representative
Alstom Transport- Saint Quen Cedex, France
Alstom Sales Network Inc.- Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
Alstom Protection & Control- Lima, Peru
Alstom Transmission and Distribution- Panama City, Panama
New York City, New York-based The Bank of New York, Inc. (2001 assets exceeding US$50 billion) is the depository for American Depository Receipts (ADR’s) for Alstom S.A. listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Alstom has operations throughout the United States, including: Hawthorne, New York-based Alstom USA Inc.; Bellevue, Washington-based Alstom ESCA Corporation; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based Alstom Power Conversion; Windsor, Connecticut-based Alstom Power Inc.; and Knoxville, Tennessee-based Alstom Power Inc. (Environmental Systems Division).
Other companies that have participated in the modernization of the Republic of Cuba’s thermoelectric plants include: Iberdrola Ingenieria y Consultoria (a subsidiary of Madrid, Spain-based Iberdrola S.A.); Paris, France-based Babcock Enterprise; Paris, France-based Davexport (affiliated with the government of France and which specializes in obtaining supplies for large construction and investment projects), Czech Republic-based CKD Energy, and Czech Republic-based Skodaexport.
The 500-megawatt Felton thermoelectric plant, which cost a reported US$500 million and has a generating capacity equal to 15% of the Republic of Cuba’s total current generating capacity, became fully operational with the completion of a second generator in 2001. The first generator was completed in 1997. The generators for the Felton thermoelectric plant were constructed by Prague, Czech Republic-based CKD Energy and sold by Prague, Czech Republic-based Skodaexport, which also provided technical assistance for the construction of the Felton thermoelectric plant. Construction of the Felton thermoelectric plant commenced before the collapse of the then-U.S.S.R.
