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Havana (AFP) – “This is hell!” exclaims Lázaro Díaz, a 59-year-old Cuban courier who has been waiting for a day in line for luck to get gasoline, in the longest fuel shortage crisis that Havanans say they have experienced in years.
Fewer and fewer cars circulate on the streets of Havana and long lines of vehicles stretch for kilometers around the gas stations of this capital.
The consequences of this crisis are direct in the economic and social life of the country.
Five universities, one in Havana and four in the province, suspended face-to-face classes this week due to the energy contingency, while with public transportation affected, many people who cannot reach their workplaces returned to teleworking.
The electric company asked users to send the registration of their light meters by mail because “the situation with fuel” may prevent its employees “from reaching each and every one of its clients” to read it, according to messages sent to its subscribers.
But Lázaro is an independent worker and says that without his motorcycle he could not generate the money he needs to support his wife, children and even grandchildren.
“I don’t have fuel, I can’t work. I didn’t work the day before yesterday, I didn’t work yesterday,” he says, leaning against a wall under the intense midday sun. “I can’t live standing in line,” he finishes.
Accustomed to the recurring lack of gasoline, Cubans affirm that this crisis, which began at the end of March, is the worst.
“It’s been the most critical,” says Édgar Sánchez, a 43-year-old volleyball coach who couldn’t make it to work because his Soviet Lada ran out of fuel.
“We are not oil producers, we depend on the world,” he says in a queue that has lasted seven hours, lamenting that Cuba is a country “financially blocked” by the United States for more than 60 years.
Avoid “zero supply”
In mid-April, President Miguel Díaz-Canel admitted that it was not “clear” how he would manage to “get out of this situation.”
According to him, Cuba currently consumes “less than 400 tons” of fuel out of the 500 to 600 it needs daily.
He explained that the countries that supply crude oil to Cuba have not fulfilled their commitments because they face “a complex energy situation,” without mentioning which nations he is referring to.
The authorities announced that the difficulties will continue during April and May. “We are going to continue removing fuel partially” to avoid “zero in the supply,” said Vicente de la O Levy, Minister of Energy and Mines.
For Jorge Piñón, an expert in energy policy at the University of Texas, the president’s complaints are directed at Venezuela, Cuba’s main supplier.
“The problem is that Cuba does not have money, it cannot pay in cash for that oil” and exchanges it with Caracas for workers such as teachers and doctors, he points out.
Oil supply plummeted in 2021 from 100,000 barrels per day to around 57,000 on average, a figure that was maintained in 2022 and the first quarter of 2023, Piñón explains. In addition, the island produces about 40,000.
In the last year Russia has also sent “three or four shipments of crude oil” on credit, while Algeria has provided a little “from time to time”, adds the expert.
“Close the tap”
Faced with this scenario, Cuba “has made the decision to turn off the tap” in order to have enough fuel for the coming months, adds Piñón.
With a fleet of about 600,000 cars, for 11.1 million inhabitants, the country consumes five times less fuel than nations like Guatemala or the Dominican Republic, says the specialist.
The authorities have preserved availability for priority activities, among which is the tourism sector, the engine of the Cuban economy.
He has left at least one gas station in Havana for vehicles with a “T” license plate, for tourism. Rental cars or buses for tours move a little more smoothly, although they are not spared from queuing either.
Cubans have created multiple WhatsApp groups that explode day and night with information of all kinds about the eternal wait.
There are groups for all tastes, for taxi drivers, private cars and companies, and even diplomats communicate to organize their queue.
Motorists have radar on in all directions.
From Matanzas, a major fuel distribution port 100 km from Havana, a taxi driver wrote on Saturday in his WhatsApp group: “I’m looking at three ships, two unloaded and one unloading now. Let’s see if this helps us.” .
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