With half of the value of luxury hotels that now languish empty, SEN recapitalization could be guaranteed.
Puerto Padre, Las Tunas.- Yesterday, in the midst of a blackout of more than 26 hours that paralyzed a large part of the country and touched us to the time of the caverns, I read- or rather rumped- the update of the article entitled “The national electrical system and the future of the Cuban economy”, By academics Jorge Piñón and Ricardo Torres.
In that text they point out: “Execute the recapitalization of the National Electrical System (SEN), with an installed capacity of 6,600 MW, would have been between five thousand and ten billion dollars between five and ten years. But neither Cuba as a state nor its citizens as consumers have the economic resources to pay the cost of the recapitalization of the SEN ”.
And they conclude with a question that weighs as lead: “Unfortunately, we don’t have the answer to the question: who pays?”
The question is valid, considering the fame of poor paying that accompanies the so -called “socialist state company”. But let’s try an analogy: if a person owned by a house or farm needs capital to undertake a business and lack cash, go to a bank. Through the mortgage of his home or farm, he obtains a loan that is assured by the value of these properties.
The mortgage is, in essence, a real guarantee right that ensures compliance with an obligation. It is frequently use because it gives the lender’s confidence: it allows to execute a real estate in case of non -compliance, although the owner does not lose possession until the moment of execution.
If we carry this reasoning at the cost of recapitating the SEN, the figures show that it does exist where to get money, if what is proclaimed by the Constitution is really fulfilled: that “sovereignty resides intranspheribly in the town” and that the property is “all the people over the fundamental means of production.” Under that premise, hotels would be owned by all Cubans.
Recall that, in Havana, the Hilton Hotel was not funded by the Hilton family, but by the Gastronomic Workers Union through its retirement box.
According to an HVS study (2020), based on data from companies and specialized institutions of the US, the construction cost of a hotel room in the Caribbean ranges between $ 165,000 in mid -range, $ 400,000 in high range and more than $ 750,000 in luxury hotels. Of the total, 11 % corresponds to the acquisition of the land, 65 % to the construction and equipment, and 12 % to legal, administrative and design expenses.
In May 2023, the Cuban state had about 81,000 hotel rooms: 44.5 % in five -star hotels and 29.6 % in four -star hotels. These facilities were administered by 24 mixed and 18 foreign companies. Of that total, 48 % belong to the Gaviota group, of the Gaesa monopoly of the Ministry of the Armed Forces.
If we calculate that 44.5 % of those rooms correspond to five -star hotels, we talk about 44 955 high -end rooms, with an estimated cost of $ 400,000 each. That shows an approximate value of 18 billion dollars only in this segment.
That is, with half of the value of the luxury hotels that now languish empty, the recapitalization of the SEN could be guaranteed. A decisive step to get the country out of the dark and return to the people the energy that belongs to it.
The question, then, is not if there is money in Cuba. The real question is whether power is willing to mortgage your luxuries to illuminate your people.
