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The Minister of Energy and Mines of Cuba, Vicente de La O Levy, acknowledged this Wednesday that the island has absolutely no reserves of fuel oil or diesel for electricity generation, in a special appearance regarding the serious situation of the National Electric System.
"We have no fuel, no diesel, only accompanying gas," declared De La O Levy, in one of the starkest admissions made by a regime official regarding the energy collapse that the Cuban people are currently facing.
The minister was emphatic in reiterating the diagnosis: "I am being repetitive: we have absolutely no fuel, we have absolutely no diesel."
The only available resources, as he explained, are the associated gas from national wells and the crude oil from domestic production, which has increased but is still insufficient to sustain the electric power system.
Cuba produces about 40,000 barrels of oil daily but consumes between 90,000 and 110,000, making it structurally dependent on imports that have virtually disappeared today.
The minister also dismissed the idea that the isothermal fuel containers imported by private businesses could cover the deficit: "The volumes of fuel that an isothermal container brings, measured in liters, are insufficient even for a generator set or half a day."
In contrast, he emphasized that "the volumes of fuel consumption for electricity generation are discussed in millions of tons."
The impact on the electrical system is devastating. On Tuesday, the maximum disruption reached 2,113 MW at 8:40 PM, with only 1,230 MW available against a demand of 3,250 MW.
The ruler himself, Miguel Díaz-Canel acknowledged that the situation is "particularly tense" and attributed a drop of 1,100 MW directly to the lack of fuel.
Venezuela interrupted its shipments in November 2025, Mexico practically suspended its supplies in January 2026, and the cargo from the Russian tanker Anatoly Kolodkin—730,000 barrels that arrived on March 31—was depleted by early May.
The only ship en route, the Russian tanker Universal with 270,000 barrels of diesel, has been adrift in the Atlantic for weeks approximately 1,600 km from Cuba, with its estimated arrival date pushed back to May 15.
The minister acknowledged in April that Cuba needs at least eight fuel ships per month, but in April 2026, only one arrived.
In light of the situation, De La O Levy urged each municipality to seek its own generation solutions and emphasized biomass, windmills, and hydraulic resources as alternatives, while blaming Donald Trump and mentioning the United States' war with Iran as factors exacerbating the scarcity.
Cuba has experienced seven total collapses of the National Electric System in 18 months, including the national blackout of March 16, 2026 which left the country without electricity for 29 hours and 29 minutes.
"The situation is critical in the units. Failing to maintain a unit is leading it to total sacrifice and losing it completely. We will remain blocked, but we will keep resisting," concluded the minister, in a statement that captures the paralysis of a regime that has no real solutions for the suffering of millions of Cubans.
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