87
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
this post was submitted on 09 Apr 2026
87 points (100.0% liked)
technology
24378 readers
314 users here now
On the road to fully automated luxury gay space communism.
Spreading Linux propaganda since 2020
- Ways to run Microsoft/Adobe and more on Linux
- The Ultimate FOSS Guide For Android
- Great libre software on Windows
- Hey you, the lib still using Chrome. Read this post!
Rules:
- 1. Obviously abide by the sitewide code of conduct. Bigotry will be met with an immediate ban
- 2. This community is about technology. Offtopic is permitted as long as it is kept in the comment sections
- 3. Although this is not /c/libre, FOSS related posting is tolerated, and even welcome in the case of effort posts
- 4. We believe technology should be liberating. As such, avoid promoting proprietary and/or bourgeois technology
- 5. Explanatory posts to correct the potential mistakes a comrade made in a post of their own are allowed, as long as they remain respectful
- 6. No crypto (Bitcoin, NFT, etc.) speculation, unless it is purely informative and not too cringe
- 7. Absolutely no tech bro shit. If you have a good opinion of Silicon Valley billionaires please manifest yourself so we can ban you.
founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
Could it be possible for Cuba to produce solar panels on their own? Or does the island lack too many of the basic materials?
It would be amazing if China gave an entire solar panel production line to Cuba.
Cuba's in a shitty position, the Soviets made it so Cuba was an agricultural powerhouse of the Socialist world, but that meant they never industrialised. That said they also have enormous Cobalt, Copper, and Nickel reserves (which were just coming online when Venezuela's economy shit the bed and ruined everything), and a decent amount of other resources. They're just short on oil, coal, gas, and iron. which is a shitty combo if you want an industry.
They do have silica reserves but they're still ramping up their first big pilot factory (again, they're not stupid, they were just dealt a shitty hand.)
My logic is that if a country needs something, it's always better to have the ability to produce it locally, I admit I left out the crucial part of the question about cost-effectiveness. But does it matter being cost-effective when self-reliance is at stake? Cuba only has 10 million people and a relatively small land area, but it isn't Grenada, Fiji or the Maldives, I believe it can achieve a level of autarky similar to the DPRK, a country with a similar land area.
China can definitely provide over the course of years the amount of solar panels necessary to power the whole country, but what about after that? The economy must grow to provide better conditions for the people and a growing economy needs a growing power capacity. China is a reliable partner, but what about the event in which the solar panel flow stops for any reason? Ultimately I believe these questions about long term economic strategy and self-reliance are still quite important, Cuba did barely survive for a long time with the way they handled things so far, but I wish to see them truly thrive for once. It's a sad sight to see all those buildings in Havana in a state of disrepair.
You make a great point, I just find it hard to accept that Cuba will always be in a vulnerable position, doomed by geography and demographics. I'm glad we had this exchange.
I share the same view as you on this, with the way imperial control mechanisms seem to be slowly withering away from Africa I believe it's not just an unfounded hope, we really might see it happen in the next 50 years. The eventual creation of a robust, self-sufficient AUSSR is likely part of the long term strategy of Chinese economic investments into the continent, as economic power grows so will leverage against systems of neocolonial control, while also creating a robust proletarian class.
A fun question to think about is where will the first spark of this movement start, where will borders start to dissolve first, I wonder.
One unified Africa under scientific socialism
The important thing is to think materialistically. Cuba isn't 'doomed' because of its geography, it is presented with different opportunities, and it is up to the community of proletarians, which is ideally represented through the state of the dictatorship of the proletariat, to recognize where those opportunities lie and create a labor force that can take advantage of them.
Cuba still possesses top of the line medical professionals, and likely one of the most comprehensive counter intelligence operations against the U.S.
Compare this to their neighbors, whose only real industries are fishing, financial crimes, sex work (non-derogatory), and tourism.
They work what they can.
Then you can get still many years of use out of the solar panels you have. It's not as big of a deal compared to oil getting cut off.
They'd want to start with assembly of parts manufactured in China, probably. That would let them gradually take over more parts of production and insert them into an already-existing process. Even if they need to import raw materials, that can still be cheaper than importing the components or final product.
But right now, they aren't really paying for the panels at all. China's just donating them. Given Cuba's size and the embargo, it might not make sense to invest in PV production. China could get the whole island running on solar in just a few years. What would be the use of manufacturing PV on the island at that point? It would be very difficult to get a consistent export market in a way that competes with what China can deliver. Cuba's priority should be building up autarkic circuits within the country powered by a Chinese-donated solar grid.
the material gain on chinas part is probably providing support for the panels (repair, technical calls, etc). theres also razor thin margins on panels in china rn so getting rid of older less efficient panels in exchange for long term support is probably a good deal for them, might be net positive over the long run. plus theres the benefit of holding to socialist values and having a very friendly country to trade with if you dont let their energy sector go to shit.
One technology I'm quite hopeful for are thin-film solar panels. They are about as efficient but can been rolled up into spool for transport so you can fit a lot more into a container. The problem right now is that they contain heavy metals. And you really don't want heavy metals for something mass produced like solar panels. But there are newer versions getting developed without heavy metals. (A large share of solar produced in the US contains heavy metals of course)
I'm still not sure how those thin-film solar panels would be best used but I imagine that you can still glue them to glass panels for longevity.
Theoretically, yeah, any country can. Practically, no. They don't have the supply chains or raw materials and getting all that going is too much under sanctions. Cuba is missing the industry and deposits of industrial grade phosphorous, boron, and silica needed to make the wafers and prerequisite materials. An island is going to be limited on what it naturally has access to.