“Some provinces have a reserve day left, others two. But in the eastern region, for example, the fuel in the Cupet tanks at our bases has already run out,” reported the Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, this Monday on Canal Caribe. The official attributed this situation to the fact that the suppliers have not been able to fulfill their commitments with Cuba due to the international context, which is reflected in the decrease in tanker arrivals in the island’s ports.
“The situation tends to improve based on decisions and negotiations, suppliers that are already fulfilling their commitments. That is one of the reasons for the delay in information, although there have been local and provincial ones,” said the minister, who the situation warned the population that the supply level of a few months ago was not going to be recovered for the moment.
“We are going to continue removing fuel partially, in a reduced way so that the fuel supply does not touch zero and vital services can be guaranteed”
“We are going to continue removing fuel partially, in a reduced way so that the fuel supply does not touch zero and vital services can be guaranteed,” he added. Among them is the potato harvest, which is going to try to guarantee, added De la O Levy, thanks to the arrival of diesel from suppliers who “begin to meet their commitments.” He last marchaccording to data from Refinitiv Eikon, 980,000 barrels of Russian oil were shared with Panama and Uruguay.
The Minister of Energy argued that there are difficulties worldwide in the sector and that there is a lack of inputs to produce fuel, and in the case of Cuba, the problems are aggravated by the embargo. “It is very difficult for us to obtain ships to transport the fuel, to seek financing, to comply with some requirements that are normal in fuel contracts,” he explained. In these circumstances, transportation failures add to the problem, he added, without saying whether that has been the case.
De la O Levy announced that in the coming days “a diminished capacity will continue to be released. We do not expect to reach point zero”, but the statements did not continue in a very rosy manner, since fuel reserves are low. “Some provinces have one day left in reserve, others two. But in the eastern region, for example, the fuel in the Cupet tanks at our bases has already run out,” he lamented, adding that the processing centers have been prioritized of food and hospitals in the distribution.
The minister also referred to the situation regarding the Turkish floating platforms, one of which, erin sultan -which contributes 110 kilowatts (KW) to the system-, has been installed in Santiago de Cuba since Sunday, according to the provincial newspaper The Demajagua. Although the authorities had anticipated the fate of the patana, there was uncertainty due to its lack of registration on the ship geolocation pages.
“Because of an international commitment that we had to fulfill, the patana came out irem sultan which was in Santiago de Cuba, but a new one from Mariel was put in, so that there would be no generation deficit in the eastern zone. With that we also avoid the crash of the systems that we had in previous weeks,” explained De la O Levy.
Meanwhile, the plant it replaces, the irem sultan, left the Island last Saturday, less than a month after serving in the eastern port. This ship, which can be followed via satellite, is heading towards Puerto Viejo, in the Dominican Republic, where its arrival is scheduled for this Tuesday.
The minister defended the government’s work yesterday and assured that he has not stood idly by in the face of the situation, continuing with the negotiations that allow “gradually reversing the present situation.”
“Due to an international commitment that we had to fulfill, the ‘Irem Sultan’ patana that was in Santiago de Cuba left, but a new one from Mariel was put in, so that there would be no generation deficit in the eastern zone”
Thus, as soon as the first shipment arrives – it is not known when or from where – Cupet will extend the working hours to work 24 hours and on weekends, in addition to extending the hours of the points of sale. He also added that, when a fuel pipe arrives, the population will be informed as soon as possible “so as not to make customers wait for pleasure.”
This month, De La O Levy recalled, the maintenance of the Cienfuegos thermoelectric plant, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, should end, which should improve the energy situation. According to the forecast of the Electric Union of Cuba, this Monday a deficit of 15% of electricity was expected. In its brief daily statement, the state-owned company forecast a demand of 2,750 megawatts (MW) in peak hours for an availability of 2,395 MW, with which the deficit would be 355 MW and the real affectation -what will actually be disconnected at that time, which is always more – 425 MW.
“In each entity of the energy system, the commitment and conviction to overcome the current contingency prevail. There will not be zero fuel in Cuba in these months. We are going to continue restricting liquefied gas, saving in our homes, and when the fuels comes a much stronger job, which is the distribution, so that they reach the people who need it”, summed up the minister.
Among the number of users who commented on the news in the press and the networks, a brief but direct message highlighted: “If things are so bad, how are they going to do May Day? How are they going to transport all the people there? Science and innovation should be not doing it , because obviously there are no conditions, right?”
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