Cuba Runs Out of Diesel and Oil as US Blockade Deepens Energy Crisis
Cuba has completely depleted its diesel and fuel oil reserves, BBC Business reported Thursday, citing a stark admission from the island’s energy minister. The Cuba energy crisis has now pushed large parts of Havana into blackouts lasting up to 22 hours a day.
Cuba’s Energy Minister Confirms Total Fuel Exhaustion
Energy Minister Vicente de la O Levy delivered an unusually blunt public assessment via state media. He confirmed that crude oil and fuel oil stocks had been completely depleted. Diesel reserves stand at zero. The only domestic energy source still flowing is natural gas from Cuban wells, where output has recently grown. De la O Levy described the overall situation as “critical,” offering little reassurance to a population already stretched thin.
Hospitals have struggled to operate normally under rolling power cuts. Schools and government offices have shut their doors. The tourism sector, a vital pillar of the Cuban economy, has also taken a severe hit.
Background: How the Blockade Squeezed Supply
Cuba has historically leaned on Venezuela and Mexico to keep its refineries running. Both countries scaled back fuel shipments after US President Donald Trump threatened tariffs against any nation supplying Cuba with oil. Washington escalated that pressure further in early May, sanctioning senior Cuban officials over alleged human rights abuses.
The US this week restated a $100 million humanitarian aid offer, contingent on what it described as meaningful political reforms. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Havana had already rejected the proposal. Cuban authorities denied that, and the State Department renewed the offer Wednesday, saying aid would flow through the Catholic Church and vetted humanitarian groups.
Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel rejected any domestic accountability. Writing on social media Wednesday, he attributed the deteriorating conditions entirely to US policy, calling it a “genocidal energy blockade.”
Protests Erupt Across Havana
Wednesday night saw the largest single evening of demonstrations in Havana since the energy crisis began in January. Hundreds of residents blocked roads with burning debris and chanted anti-government slogans, Reuters reported. In the San Miguel del Padron neighbourhood, crowds demanded the government restore electricity. The scale of the unrest marked a significant shift in public tolerance.
A Russian oil tanker did briefly dock in Cuba in late March, offering temporary relief. No similar shipment appears imminent now.
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