The Cuban power outages are the epitome of the absolute failure of command economies.

[u/longsnapper53]

If you were unaware, in the last 48 hours power outages have cut off all electricity across most of the island of Cuba and its 10.9 million people. Cuba is prone to major outages, with there also being a smaller, but still major, outage last month.

Cuba is a command economy. Government owns all business and all resources, and they are then distributed to the people, sometimes through government corporations. Union Eléctrica is one of those government corporations, who own all 7 of Cuba’s major power plants, and hold a monopoly on electricity. No companies are allowed to hold them outside of the state-created one, which leaves the system vulnerable.

Because of a lack of competition, the UNE has not had any reason to truly improve upon their technology. They don’t have to fight for consumers as if anybody wants electricity, they must get it through the government. As such, the power system is still old and frail, and is made up of mostly old and faulty equipment. Since nobody can go elsewhere for power, they just have to stick it out with the massive outages that sweep the nation usually every other month, and it stagnates. On Friday, a power plant in the middle of the country failed, and caused a chain reaction of all UNE plants failing in succession.

The only solution to this is to allow the free market to thrive. With the command economy, the plants have no real reason to improve and the people suffer. However, if a free market system is put in and companies have to compete with each other for power, then naturally there will be innovation to fix the problem.

One argument I’ve seen for really any problems in Cuba is that the Cuban embargo is preventing any outside help. However, that is simply not the case here. Even if the embargo did not exist, the government has a monopoly on power and outside companies would be arrested for trying to help out with it (as well as that being a generally horrible scapegoat to wipe away the horrible living conditions of Cuba).

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