Amid power outages, a Cuban company wants to produce electric cars

AREQUIPA, Peru – Amid the island’s energy crisis, marked by constant blackouts, the company Vehículos Eléctricos del Caribe (VEDCA) plans to bring electric cars to Cuba for the domestic market.

A report from the state media Cubadebate indicates that VEDCA is associated with the Chinese company Tianjin Dongxing and the Cuban company Minerva.

Since the end of 2019, in the midst of the Covid-19 crisis, the entity began its operations as an international economic partnership contract. Due to the pandemic, VEDCA postponed its production until the second half of 2021, which is intended to supply state chains with vehicles such as motorcycles, electric bicycles, and to a lesser extent, tricycles.

According to Julio Oscar Pérez Pérez, director of the company, tricycles have become the star product from VEDCA because they have come to help with the lack of fuel and transportation problems, especially for the non-state sector.

Currently, and despite the impacts on the national electrical and energy system, the company wants to focus on cars, which are being tested in China before being sent to Cuba.

“In fact, we are testing small and medium-power electric cars for the Cuban market, with good results (…) So that by the end of this year VEDCA will have identified an electric car with a range of about 300 kilometers, a maximum speed of 100 to 110 km/h, interior comfort, air conditioning and other features,” said Pérez Pérez.

The leader assured that they were constantly evaluating the “needs of the market.” VEDCA’s production plan is for about 10,000 units per year, combining motorcycles (mostly), tricycles and other products, including parts, pieces and accessories.

However, the challenge for the company, and its domestic clients, lies in the island’s own context, in finding a use and market for products that consume electricity in an environment where it is scarce.

Cuba is a country where there are constant blackouts and the regime authorities recently announced future measures to regulate the entry of high-consumption equipment due to the energy deficit.

This Friday, the forecast of the Electric Union Cuba estimated that during peak hours there would be a availability of 2,667 megawatts (MW) and a maximum demand of 3,000 MW, for a deficit of 333 MW, so if the conditions continue there will be an impact of 403 MW during this time.