Cuba is facing a nationwide blackout as its aging power grid has collapsed, leading the government to declare an “energy state of emergency.” Officials say that efforts to stabilize the grid are ongoing, but power outages are expected to continue in the coming days.

Prior to the grid’s failure, Prime Minister Marrero said to the nation in a televised address, “We have to say with total transparency, concerning the economy, we have had to paralyze all fundamental institutions to guarantee the minimum amount of energy for the population.”

The government quickly moved to suspend all non-vital services that generate energy costs — closing schools, restaurants, and ordering all governmental workers deemed non-essential to stay home. Regardless of the government’s emergency measures, early Friday morning the grid collapsed.

Cuba’s aging energy infrastructure depends heavily on imported oil, mainly coming from Venezuela with Russia and Mexico. Following Venezuelan dictator Maduro’s success in stealing his country’s election in July, the United States has continued to apply oil export sanctions on Venezuela, leading Cuban President Diaz-Canel to blame the United States for the current energy crisis.

Significant dependency on imported oil, alongside an aging Cold War-era power grid, leaves the Cuban government in a difficult position regarding how to get its power infrastructure back up and running for the island’s 11 million residents.

The energy crisis is occurring in the context of a larger cash-crunch and migration crisis that has left the Cuban economy unable to pay for its energy needs, with food and medicine shortages adding to the country’s economic problems.

The inability of Cuban tourism to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic combined with American sanctions have left the country unable to increase its foreign currency reserves with year-on-year inflation being estimated to be more than 30 percent, with black market rates being said to be more than 500 percent.

The Cuban government has sought increasing food aid in recent months, stemming from Cuba’s inability to import essential goods from abroad. In July of this year, the Cuban government declared Cuba’s situation to be one analogous to a “wartime economy.”

In the days ahead, the government is expected to explore emergency measures to restore power, including negotiations for increased oil imports and seeking assistance from foreign nations. However, due to the government’s disfavored international status, the island faces tough decisions on how to sustain essential services and address its ongoing energy challenges