Miguel Díaz-Canel visited the International Economic Association “Caribbean Electric Vehicles” (VEDCA) this Friday, located in Boyeros, Havana, and presented it as “a stronghold of cooperation with China” and a tangible expression of the so-called “Community of Shared Future” between the two countries.
The president was accompanied by the Minister of Industries, Eloy Álvarez Martínez, and the Chinese ambassador to Cuba, Hua Xin, on a tour that the regime presented as a demonstration of progress in the island's energy transition, coinciding with the end of President Donald Trump's visit to the Asian country.
On his X account, Díaz-Canel wrote: “Energy transition is one of the strategic priorities of the country, and within it, electric mobility is fundamental. VEDCA is an example of how much further we can progress on that path.”
The president also promised to return to the plant before the end of the year: "Thanks to your team. Before the year ends, we will come back," he posted.
VEDCA was established in 2019 as a joint venture between the Chinese firm Tianjin Dongxing Industrial Group Co. Ltd., which holds 58% of the investment, and the Cuban company Minerva. Its catalog includes bicycles, motorcycles, tricycles, quadricycles, scooters, and electric children's vehicles.
The plant director, Julio Oscar Pérez Pérez, stated that the relationship between the two partner companies exceeds 20 years. In 2024, VEDCA reported revenues of over 12 million dollars, and by 2026, it aims to produce more than 20,000 units and generate approximately 40 million dollars in revenue.
However, in that same year, the plant was operating below its capacity due to financial, logistical, and market issues, a contradiction that the official discourse omitted during the visit.
Starting in 2026, VEDCA will also incorporate tricycles with photovoltaic panels, combining electric mobility with solar generation, in line with the Cuban regime's increasing reliance on Chinese technology in that sector.
The visit takes place in the context of a profound energy crisis shaking Cuba. In April 2026, the UN warned that the island had been without sufficient fuel for over three months, with blackouts systematically affecting health, water, food, education, and transportation.
Amid this collapse, the regime has intensified its focus on Beijing: Cuban imports of Chinese solar panels increased from 48 million dollars in 2024 to 117 million in 2025, and China announced the connection of seven solar parks on the island.
The bilateral relationship has deepened since September 2025, when Díaz-Canel met with Xi Jinping during a tour of China, Vietnam, and Laos, and both governments signed 11 cooperation documents in areas such as artificial intelligence, biotechnology, agriculture, and infrastructure. Xi Jinping then described the Cuba-China relationship as a "model of solidarity."
The concept of "Community of Shared Future" that Díaz-Canel invoked in VEDCA is the official Chinese term used to describe its model of international relations, adopted by Havana as the framework for its alliance with Beijing, while the Cuban population endures blackouts affecting over 70% of the territory.
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