The state-owned company Cubapetróleo (CUPET) has indefinitely suspended the distribution of liquefied gas in Santiago de Cuba and the other eastern provinces due to a lack of supply, in a new episode that deepens the energy crisis that has been affecting the island for months.
According to a report from Martí Noticias, citing statements from local sources, the gas is currently on a ship coming from Russia, but the authorities acknowledge that the unloading and distribution process "will take time" and do not provide a clear date for the resumption of service.
The suspension has caused a surge in prices in the informal market, where a domestic gas cylinder reaches between 10,000 and 12,000 Cuban pesos in rural areas and can be listed at up to 50,000 pesos in eastern cities, while bulk gas exceeds 30,000 pesos. For many families, that cost is unaffordable.
Faced with scarcity, thousands of households have had to return to cooking with firewood or charcoal, even in urban areas. Among the most affected are the elderly, sick individuals, and mothers with young children, who lack alternatives for preparing food or boiling water.
The problem is not limited to the eastern part of the country. In central provinces such as Camagüey and Ciego de Ávila, residents have gone weeks without receiving liquefied gas, while in some areas of the west, supplies are also decreasing.
Activists and neighbors describe the situation as a social setback, with families lighting makeshift fires in yards and doorways, in scenes reminiscent of the harshest years of the Special Period.
The paralysis of liquefied gas adds to the prolonged blackouts and fuel shortages, which are already impacting production, transportation, and public services.
The situation worsens amid the halt of energy imports from Venezuela, Russia, and Iran, following the capture of Nicolás Maduro and the initiation of Operation Southern Spear, through which the United States has seized several vessels from the so-called “ghost fleets” that were transporting oil and fuels to Cuba and other allied countries.
Without those regular shipments of crude oil and derivatives, the Cuban regime is facing an unprecedented energy shortage, with the population bearing the consequences in their daily lives.
In Santiago de Cuba, where the suspension was officially confirmed, citizens are demanding that the government provide a realistic timeline and emergency measures to prevent the energy crisis from turning into a large-scale humanitarian crisis.
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