More than 20 days without being able to cook due to power outages and gas shortages led a Cuban woman to spend 99 dollars on a gas cylinder. And they didn't even deliver it to her home: she had to travel to Campo Florido in Havana to pick it up.
The protagonist of the story is Gely la Flaki, a Cuban known on social media who documented in several videos on Facebook the difficulties she faced in obtaining fuel through CubaMax, a shipping company based in Hialeah, Florida.
"In Cuba, even with money, it's difficult," he summarized at the beginning of one of the videos.
The sentence ultimately described everything that followed. Gely explained that she had been facing enormous difficulties in cooking for over 20 days, caught between a lack of gas and prolonged power outages that also made it impossible to rely on electric appliances as an alternative.
Faced with the need, he decided to pay the 99 dollars to get a "gas balita" through CubaMax. "I was able to get it through CubaMax, which are really expensive. It cost me a total of ninety-nine dollars, and to top it off, I have to go pick it up in Campo Florido," he recounted.
The surprise didn't end with the price. When he finally had the cylinder and was able to compare it with those commonly used in Cuba, he discovered that it was also smaller.
"Yes, ninety-nine dollars, and wait for it. And it's much smaller than the original," she remarked while showing both to the camera.
Gely had tried to convince herself that the hefty expense would at least have one advantage: keeping a second cylinder to use as a backup when she could buy gas at a lower price. However, the size difference complicated that possibility as well. "I mentally prepared myself so that the cost wouldn't hurt as much. I said: no, I'll have another little one there for when it appears cheaper. I'll buy two. But no, because this one is much smaller than the one they usually sell," she explained.
In addition, he fears that the new cylinder cannot be used in the usual state container exchange system. "And obviously, when I hand over that small empty cylinder for a larger one, they won't accept it," he lamented.
Users who commented on the videos noted that the $99 would correspond to the initial purchase, which includes the container, while subsequent refills would cost between $19 and $29.
From the state price to pay almost 100 dollars to be able to cook
The disbursement highlights the significant gap between the official price of liquefied gas and what a family might end up paying when the product is no longer available through regulated channels.
In July 2026, the Cuban government established a rate of 35 pesos per kilogram of liquefied gas, which means a 10 kg cylinder would have an official price of 350 pesos.
The problem for many families is not just how much it officially costs, but actually getting it.
The prolonged scarcity has led to a surge in informal alternatives and purchases from abroad. Between May and June, the "balitas" went from 24 to 50 dollars in the informal market, while in Santiago de Cuba, offers were reported for up to 65,000 pesos for gas and 75,000 pesos with the cylinder included.
In that context, paying 99 dollars for a small ball illustrates how far a family can go when they need to solve something as fundamental as preparing food.
Without gas and with blackouts: what to cook with?
The situation described by Gely occurs in the midst of an energy crisis that has drastically reduced the domestic alternatives for Cubans.
CUPET suspended the distribution of liquefied gas in the eastern part of the country in January due to supply issues. Additionally, this August, a breakdown in Canasí affected the manufactured gas service in seven municipalities of Havana.
The fuel shortages are compounded by blackouts that last for a significant part of the day in some areas of the country. When electricity and gas are both unavailable, cooking ceases to be a daily task and becomes yet another problem that families must resolve as best they can, even resorting to coal and firewood.
The story sparked numerous reactions on social media, particularly due to the price paid.
"100 dollars cost me two years of gas here in Colombia," commented a Colombian user.
Another highlighted an even harsher reality: being able to afford that amount is, in itself, a privilege in a country where state salaries are paid in Cuban pesos.
"You are privileged to be able to buy it. The working people will not be able to," he pointed out.
Gely also did not hide the disproportionate nature of the spending. However, after more than 20 days facing difficulties in preparing food, he explained that he practically saw no other way out.
"Well, yes, darling, ninety-nine for a gas cylinder. With gas, of course. The good thing is I get to keep the cylinder. It seems unbelievable, but it's true. But it has to be done because how am I going to cook?"
Her experience summarizes one of the harshest paradoxes of daily life in Cuba: having money no longer guarantees finding what you need, but when it finally appears, meeting a basic need like cooking can cost nearly 100 dollars.
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