A video posted on Facebook by Yicel Tabares shows two individuals refueling a car on the highway with a yellow jerry can, as they head toward the eastern region of Cuba, in a scene that encapsulates the ordeal faced by those trying to travel across the island amidst the worst fuel crisis in decades.
"Don’t dream of finding a gas station to fuel your car in Cuba; that’s a mission impossible. Bring your fuel in a container if you plan to travel far," warns Tabares in the description of the video, which has garnered over 65,000 views.
The overlay text in the images says it all: "Heading East... and with emergency fuel."
Carrying fuel in plastic containers has become the only guarantee of reaching their destination for those traveling the long distances that separate Havana from provinces like Holguín, Santiago de Cuba, Granma, Las Tunas, or Guantánamo.
The collapse of interprovincial transport further worsens the situation. Bayamo has temporarily suspended travel between provinces, Sancti Spíritus has reduced its services to one daily departure to Havana, and Camagüey is barely maintaining one bus per day.
In the informal market, a ticket to the East can cost between 15,000 and 30,000 Cuban pesos.
The shortage has led to desperate solutions. On May 29, Cubans resorted to pouring sunflower oil into the tank of a bus due to a lack of diesel, in what has been described as one of the most extreme inventions of the crisis.
Fuel prices have reached unattainable levels for most Cubans. Since May 15, the regime eliminated the fixed price and adopted a floating scheme: special gasoline B100 has reached a cost of 2.60 dollars per liter at state stations, sold exclusively in dollars through an official app.
In the black market, the price soared to eight dollars per liter, and in June, three liters sold for 16,000 Cuban pesos in the informal market, compared to the 700 to 1,500 pesos per liter that they cost in January.
The root of the crisis lies in the collapse of external supplies. Venezuela completely halted its oil shipments to Cuba on November 15, 2025, and Mexico followed suit in early 2026, leaving the country without imports for four consecutive months.
Cuba produces only 40% of the 110,000 daily barrels it needs internally. Russia donated a temporary shipment of 730,000 barrels, which quickly ran out.
Miguel Díaz-Canel acknowledged in April 2026 that Cuba "absolutely lacks fuel for almost everything," an admission that has not been accompanied by concrete solutions for the population.
In that context, on June 11, The New York Times reported that the United States blocked an energy agreement that would have allowed Cuba to receive about 250,000 barrels, barely enough for a week and a half of demand, further worsening the situation.
Executive Order 14380, signed by Donald Trump on January 29, 2026, imposes secondary sanctions prohibiting third countries from selling fuel to the island.
While the governments negotiate and sanctions pile up, ordinary Cubans find a way to cope: with a yellow jug, a hose, and the hope of reaching the East.
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