There is analysis that the United States' tough sanctions on Cuba are paradoxically speeding up Cuba's "solar revolution." With U.S. pressure blocking crude oil imports and Cuba suffering nationwide blackouts, the country is accelerating its solar expansion with Chinese support.
Cuba is currently going through its worst energy crisis in decades. Most of its power system relies on oil, but nationwide blackouts are recurring as crude imports have plummeted. On the 3rd, three nationwide outages occurred. CNN said, "All of Cuba, with a population of 10 million, was plunged into darkness, hospital surgeries were limited, and residents had to cook with firewood," adding, "Trash piled up in the streets and air-conditioning units stopped, fueling public discontent."
In the past, Cuba received oil from the Soviet Union, and after the Soviet collapse, it brought in crude through an agreement with Venezuela in exchange for dispatching medical personnel. But the situation changed dramatically early this year when the Donald Trump administration cut off the supply chain for Venezuelan crude. After additional U.S. tariff pressure, even other suppliers such as Mexico reduced exports, leaving Cuba effectively in an "energy isolation" state.
Some, however, say Washington's hard-line pressure could instead hasten Cuba's transition to clean energy. Kevin Cashman, an economist at the U.S.-U.K. research group Transition Security Project, said, "As renewables increase, dependence on fuel imports declines, and the tools of pressure the United States has wielded may weaken."
According to the energy think tank Ember, Cuba sharply increased imports of Chinese-made solar panels and batteries over the past year and built dozens of solar farms with Chinese investment. China's exports of solar panels to Cuba were about $3 million (about 4.5 billion won) in 2023, but surged to $117 million (about 174.3 billion won) in 2025. Cuba, in partnership with China, is also pushing a project to build 92 solar farms nationwide by 2028. When completed, total generation capacity will be 2 gigawatts (GW), enough to power about 1.5 million households.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel personally opened the first solar farm in Feb. last year, and about 50 sites are now in operation. Cuba installed roughly 1 GW of new solar capacity in just the past year. The share of renewables has risen from about 3% in 2024 to around 10% now. The Cuban government aims to expand that to at least 24% by 2030.
There is also a view that China is seeking effects beyond simple economic gains. Jorge Piñon, a researcher at the University of Texas Energy Institute, said, "China wants to build a friendly image across Latin America through Cuba."
On the other hand, some argue that Cuba's power grid is too outdated and the economy too dire for solar alone to solve the problem. Prolonged blackouts continue, and most Cubans still do not feel the benefits of the solar rollout. Ricardo Torres, a Cuban economist at American University in Washington, D.C., said, "A clean energy revolution sounds good, but in the end you need resources to make it happen."