Pemex withdrew a shipment scheduled for mid-January from its schedule.
MIAMI.- The state company Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) canceled the shipment of a shipment of crude oil destined for Cuba, a decision that indicates that pressure from the United States is already influencing concrete actions with a direct impact on the critical energy situation of the Island.
According to information published by BloombergPemex withdrew from its programming a shipment scheduled for mid-January, whose arrival at Cuban ports was calculated before the end of the month. The oil would be transported by the ship Swift Galaxy, but it was removed from the itinerary without the oil company or the Mexican Energy Secretariat offering official explanations.
The cancellation occurs at a particularly sensitive time for Cuba. Since 2023, Mexico had assumed a key role as a supplier after the collapse of crude oil shipments from Venezuela, becoming a fundamental support amid prolonged blackouts, fuel shortages and a deep economic crisis. In the last year alone, Mexican shipments were around 20,000 barrels per day, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
The stop to shipments coincides with a hardening of Washington’s tone towards Havana. US President Donald Trump recently reiterated his rejection of any form of energy assistance to the Cuban regime and expressed it bluntly on social networks: “There will be no more oil or money for Cuba. Zero!”
The message came a few days after the capture of Nicolás Maduro by US forces, a fact that further aggravated the reduction in Venezuelan supplies, which until now covered close to 30% of the island’s energy needs in 2025, according to estimates. The disappearance of this support leaves a void that the Cuban State is not in a position to compensate, especially due to the shortage of foreign currency to import crude oil on the international market, while blackouts are becoming more frequent and longer.
Until now, the Mexican government had publicly justified the shipments as a form of “humanitarian aid.” President Claudia Sheinbaum recently assured that Mexico planned to maintain supply to alleviate the Cuban energy crisis. However, sources previously cited by Reuters already warned that the policy was being reviewed internally due to the risk of commercial and political retaliation by the United States.
