Research reveals that Mexico donated tons of equipment from its power plants to Cuba.

The Government of Mexico gifted the Government of Cuba electrical equipment and parts valued at 12.8 million Mexican pesos (over 700 thousand dollars) under the concept of humanitarian assistance following the passage of Hurricane Ian in 2022, according to an investigation by the site Latinus.

Under the title "The millionaire gift from the CFE to the government of Cuba: sent tons of equipment from its plants as humanitarian assistance," journalist Mario Gutiérrez Vega from this news portal and author of the investigation points out that the "courtesy" of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's (AMLO) government was made between the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), led by Manuel Bartlet, which removed thousands of parts and specialized equipment from its facilities, along with the Ministry of Energy and Mines.

"The state-owned company made a first delivery of materials under the pretext of helping the government of Miguel Díaz-Canel after Hurricane 'Ian' impacted the island on September 27, 2022," the report states.

They add that "five months later, when the electrical service was already restored in Cuba, the CFE made two new deliveries claiming that the emergency continued."

The deliveries were processed as donations to the company Energoimport, belonging to the Ministry of Energy and Mines of Cuba. The aim, they argue, was to avoid "the commercial and financial embargo that the United States has on the island and that punishes companies that do business with the Cuban government."

Data provided in the investigation indicate that on February 27, 2023, the CFE removed three valves valued at 4.7 million pesos from the Adolfo López Mateos thermoelectric plant, located in Tuxpan, Veracruz, and sent them to the Antonio Guiteras Thermoelectric Plant in Matanzas.

That same year, but on April 21, a new donation left the aforementioned Mexican power plant bound for Cuba. In this case, 1,000 square meters of metal roofing and 16 pieces including regulators, gates, industrial switches, and hydrogen coolers were transported to the island, all valued at 482,000 Mexican pesos (approximately 25 thousand dollars).

Latinus confirmed that the equipment sent to Cuba did not affect the operation of the Mexican power plant.

They claim that in addition to electrical materials, CFE sent 16 specialists to the island to help restore electrical service after Hurricane Ian, noting that "the workers traveled to Cuba on September 28 and 29, 2022, and most returned to Mexico on October 10."

They detail that the Secretary of National Defense conducted 16 flights for the first delivery of goods, which included 69,000 meters of cable valued at 3.5 million pesos (almost 200,000 dollars) and more than 9,000 insulators that are placed on light poles and had an estimated cost of 3.2 million (almost 18,000 dollars).

Although the report is presented as a denunciation in the Mexican context, it is important to note that Hurricane Ian made landfall in Cuba in the early hours of September 27, 2022, causing the provinces of Pinar del Río and Artemisa, along with the special municipality of Isla de la Juventud, to lose electricity.

Two days after the weather event, which left three dead on the island, the Mexican president stated in a morning conference that Cuba has always been very supportive of Mexico, so they were not going to "leave" them alone.

Days later, it was reported that the government of the Aztec country had sent electrical materials and specialized personnel to Cuba to repair the damage caused in the west of the country.

More than 72,000 meters of cable, seven thousand insulators, and other resources arrived in the country, according to the then First Deputy Minister of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment, Ana Teresita González Fraga.

Despite the arrival of these elements, the recovery on the island took months, and in terms of housing, there are still people affected by the cyclone who have not been able to get ahead, suffering from the neglect of the regime in Havana.

Mexican aid was added to another that the government of Nicolás Maduro would send, while international organizations such as the Red Cross, UNDP, and PAHO also made proposals to provide resources to Cuba.

Actors of Cuban civil society, artists, and Cubans living abroad came together with support initiatives during that disaster.