In the midst of a prolonged economic crisis, the Cuban government has announced new measures aimed at «regulating» residential electricity consumption.

Among the proposals, the possibility of applying differentiated rates for homes that exceed certain levels of consumption, and even collecting excesses in US dollars, an option that has lit alarms in a company where most wages are paid in Cuban pesos.

Although all details have not yet been formalized, sources in the energy sector indicate that the objective is to encourage savings and reduce the tax burden that the state subsidy to electricity represents.

However, for many Cubans, who already face blackouts of up to fourteen hours a day in some provinces, the news has not been well received.

«They ask us to save, but we have no current to spend,» says Raúl, a Holguin resident. «And now they say that if one spends more than the account, you have to pay in dollars. Where are we going to get those dollars, if all we earn is in pesos?» He asks with evident frustration.

Increases from 2024 and a rising trend

The new proposal adds to the increases applied in early 2024, when the State increased rates by 25% for those who consume more than 500 kilowatts time (kWh) per month.

Although the government argues that this strip represents a minority of residential consumers, those affected include from small entrepreneurs to large families, where energy expenditure does not always respond to waste, but to need.

In a country where appliances are old, refrigeration is essential due to tropical climate, and the blackouts force the equipment to turn on when there is current without knowing for how long, many homes have no real margin to «consume less.»

An invoice in foreign exchange for those who do not receive them

The possibility that the additional kilowatts are charged in foreign currency, according to the authorities, would put Cuban families against a dilemma: further limit their already precarious quality of life or seek access to the dollar by informal roads, where the exchange rate exceeds 360 CUP per unit.

For those who do not receive remittances or have links with tourism or the private sector, this is equivalent to an economic penalty that they simply cannot assume.

In addition to the increase, the lack of transparency on the supply persists. Electric cuts are not only prolonged, but also without warning, affecting food cooking, medicine conservation and the operation of essential equipment. In this context, the increase in electric service seems contradictory.

Internet: Another service that moves away from the common Cuban citizen

In parallel, the Telecommunications Company of Cuba (ETECSA) recently announced new policies that limit the use of national recharges for mobile service and increase the dependence on currency recharges.

Although this issue is not directly linked to electricity consumption, it is part of the same trend: the partial dollarization of basic services in a country where the entry into MLC (freely convertible currency) is not part of the daily life of the average citizen.

Internet access, such as electricity, has become a privilege that not everyone can afford. And while the official discourse insists on the call to «resistance», the material conditions of the population deteriorate without clear signals of improvement.

Between precariousness and uncertainty

The combination of blackouts, rates rise and possible dollarization of electricity consumption draws an uncertain panorama for Cuban homes. Far from encouraging savings, these measures could deepen inequality, discourage private activity and increase social frustration.

In the short term, the immediate effect is clear: more Cubans paying more for less services, in a country where energy is becoming a limited, conditioned and exclusive resource.