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Solar autonomy scorecard · Modelled estimate

Can a business in Cuba run on solar and a battery?

With PV sized at 120% of annual consumption, a battery that carries one night covers 83% of the demand in Cuba; a battery holding three days of consumption lifts that to 99%.

Generation is almost flat through the year: the strongest month yields 1.5× the weakest, so there is no season to bridge.

In the three leanest months 1.0% of the annual consumption stays uncovered — a gap a generator or a modest grid connection can fill.

Households pay on average 0.014 USD per kWh; the source publishes no business price.

Electricity price, businesses
not published
Electricity price, households
0.014USD/kWh
PV yield
1,550kWh/kWp
Seasonal spread
1.5×strongest ÷ weakest month
Three-day battery
10.6kWh/kWp
Lean-season deficit
1.0%of annual consumption

Two battery scenarios

Both with PV sized at 120% of annual consumption.

Day-night battery

Stores the daytime surplus for the following night.

Self-sufficiency
83%
Self-consumption
69%
Battery size
1.9 kWh/kWp

Three-day battery

Holds three full days of consumption, to ride through overcast spells.

Self-sufficiency
99%
Self-consumption
82%
Battery size
10.6 kWh/kWp

Generation and demand through the year

Share of the annual total per month. Modelled from latitude and climate class, not measured.

0%6%11%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
PV yield Consumption
Weakest month
6.4%
Strongest month
9.4%
Seasonal spread
1.5×
Consumption profile
mild summer peak (cooling)
Climate class
Caribbean
PV yield / Consumption — Cuba
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
PV yield (%)8.28.89.49.39.28.88.78.57.96.96.48.0
Consumption (%)7.47.47.88.29.09.49.49.49.08.27.87.4

A lean season to cover

In the three leanest months 1.0% of the annual consumption stays uncovered — a gap a generator or a modest grid connection can fill.

Every modelled value for Cuba

The same fields as the downloadable dataset, with their definition.

VariableValueDefinition
ContinentcontinentNorth America / CaribbeanContinent the country belongs to.
CountrycountryCubaCountry name in English.
RegionregionClimate region within the country; empty when the country is modelled as one region.
Electricity price, householdsprice_households_usd_mwh0.014 USD/kWh USD/MWhAverage all-in retail price for households, national average. Static average, not a dynamic or market price.
Electricity price, businessesprice_businesses_usd_mwhnot publishedAverage all-in retail price for businesses, national average. Empty where the source publishes no business price.
PV yieldpv_yield_kwh_kwp1,550 kWh/kWp/yearEstimated annual yield of a well-oriented PV system per installed kWp, rounded to the nearest fifty.
Weakest month shareweakest_month_share_pct6.4%Share of the annual yield produced in the weakest of the twelve months (the wet season in monsoon climates, winter elsewhere). A perfectly flat year gives one twelfth per month.
Strongest month sharestrongest_month_share_pct9.4%Share of the annual yield produced in the strongest of the twelve months.
Seasonal spreadseasonal_spread1.5×Strongest month divided by weakest month. Close to one means flat generation all year; above ten means strongly seasonal.
Self-consumption, day-night batteryself_consumption_daynight_pct69%Share of the PV generation that is used on site with a battery sized to carry one night. Equals self-sufficiency divided by the oversizing factor.
Self-sufficiency, day-night batteryself_sufficiency_daynight_pct83%Share of the annual consumption covered by PV plus a battery sized to carry one night. Never above one hundred percent.
Battery size, day-nightbattery_daynight_kwh_kwp1.9 kWh/kWpBattery capacity needed to carry the night-time share of one day of consumption, per kWp of PV.
Self-consumption, three-day batteryself_consumption_3day_pct82%Share of the PV generation that is used on site with a battery holding three days of consumption.
Self-sufficiency, three-day batteryself_sufficiency_3day_pct99%Share of the annual consumption covered by PV plus a battery holding three days of consumption. This is the figure the energy-island assessment is based on.
Battery size, three-daybattery_3day_kwh_kwp10.6 kWh/kWpBattery capacity equal to three days of consumption, per kWp of PV.
Consumption profileconsumption_profilemild summer peak (cooling)Assumed seasonal shape of demand for the climate: winter peak (heating), summer peak (cooling), double peak or near-flat.
Lean-season deficitwinter_deficit_pct1%Demand that stays unmet during the three consecutive lowest-yield months, despite the three-day battery, as a share of annual consumption. It is what remains for the grid, a backup generator or seasonal storage.
Lean-season deficit, absolutewinter_deficit_kwh_kwp13.4 kWh/kWpThe same deficit expressed in kWh per kWp of PV.
Latitudelatitude21.5 °Representative latitude used by the astronomical yield model; negative is the southern hemisphere.
Climate classclimateCaribbeanClimate class that sets the monthly cloud pattern, day-to-day variability and consumption profile.
Monthly yield sharesmonthly_yield_share_pct8.2 · 8.8 · 9.4 · 9.3 · 9.2 · 8.8 · 8.7 · 8.5 · 7.9 · 6.9 · 6.4 · 8.0Twelve values, January to December: share of the annual PV yield per month. Modelled from latitude and climate class, not measured.
Monthly consumption sharesmonthly_consumption_share_pct7.4 · 7.4 · 7.8 · 8.2 · 9.0 · 9.4 · 9.4 · 9.4 · 9.0 · 8.2 · 7.8 · 7.4Twelve values, January to December: assumed share of the annual consumption per month.

Download this scorecard as JSON

How the model works

Monthly PV yield comes from an astronomical model (latitude, declination, tilt) multiplied by a climate pattern for cloud and rain. Day-to-day variability follows a gamma distribution per climate; multi-day coverage is the sum of independent days. Seasonal consumption is set per climate: a winter peak for heating, a summer peak for cooling, a double peak in Mediterranean climates.

Fixed assumptions

PV sized at 120% of annual consumption; 55% of consumption falls outside direct sun hours; battery round-trip efficiency 92%.

What it is not

An analytical approximation, not an hourly simulation of your site. Prices are static national averages, not dynamic or market prices. The deficit is not a storage recommendation: it quantifies what remains for grid, backup or seasonal storage.

Sources

  • Electricity prices: national averages, Q2 2026.
  • PV yield: Estimates in line with Global Solar Atlas (World Bank / Solargis), rounded to the nearest 50 kWh/kWp.
  • Licence: CC BY 4.0.
  • Dataset updated 2026-09-22

From country average to your own roof

The configurator is not live for Cuba yet. See where it runs today, or ask us to model your site.

Cuba — solar autonomy in short

Can a business in Cuba go off-grid with solar and a battery?

With PV sized at 120% of annual consumption, a battery that carries one night covers 83% of the demand in Cuba; a battery holding three days of consumption lifts that to 99%. In the three leanest months 1.0% of the annual consumption stays uncovered — a gap a generator or a modest grid connection can fill.

How large a battery does solar autonomy take in Cuba?

Per kWp of PV, carrying one night takes about 1.9 kWh of battery and holding three days of consumption about 10.6 kWh. With the three-day battery, self-sufficiency reaches 99%.

How much does solar generation in Cuba vary between seasons?

A well-oriented system yields about 1,550 kWh per kWp a year. The strongest month produces 1.5× the weakest: 9.4% against 6.4% of the annual yield.

What does electricity cost in Cuba?

Households pay on average 0.014 USD per kWh; the source publishes no business price.

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