A new batch of 25 submersible water pumping units will benefit customers who now receive the service with low pressure or who lack direct connection to the aqueduct networks, Granma newspaper reported on its digital edition on Thursday.

According to the newspaper, the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources (INRH) confirmed that the machines began to arrive in the country and will be installed in various provinces, including Santiago de Cuba and Holguín, in the east, and Artemisa and Havana, in the west.

The institute’s assessment indicates that the main cause of the total or partial damages to the aqueduct service is the pumping deficit, according to the newspaper.

In the most critical moments, 490,000 inhabitants are affected due to that reason, but since the arrival of the new equipment, that figure has decreased considerably and other pumps are in transit to continue to improve the situation, INRH President Antonio Rodríguez said.

The aqueduct service, he commented, is the second largest consumer of electric energy on a national scale; therefore, investments that allow the transition to clean energies are a priority.

According to Rodríguez, they are currently working hard to finalize the assembly of up to 270 pumps associated with the change to the energy matrix in the first stage, and to start the installation of 144 pieces of equipment as planned in the second phase of the project.

An investment process has also begun to increase the use of solar energy in the generation of electricity, which contemplates the construction, from now to 2028, of 92 photovoltaic parks, with a capacity to generate 2,000 megawatts (MW).

According to the report, forces from Unión Eléctrica are preparing the conditions to receive the first 200 containers with the necessary materials, as well as the transportation and scaffolding plans for the location of the first 46 solar parks, with a generation capacity of 21 MW each.

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