Latin American Summary, June 16, 2024.
Russia will help Cuba reestablish its electricity generation system, Russian Energy Minister Sergei Tsiviliov said today during a meeting with Cuban Deputy Prime Minister Ricardo Cabrisas, at a time when the Caribbean nation is going through serious electricity supply problems.
“The construction of new energy facilities is an important stage for reestablishing the working capacity of Cuba’s energy system. “I am sure that the participation and experience of Russian specialists will represent a considerable contribution to the energy branch of the republic,” said the Russian minister, quoted on Telegram.
According to the Russian Ministry of Energy, representatives of Russia and Cuba “discussed the prospects for cooperation” in the fuel and energy complex of the largest of the Antilles and cooperation in the construction of energy facilities.
They also discussed cooperation in the field of oil and gas, in particular around the joint project of the Boca de Jaruco field, “where high levels of crude oil extraction were reached.”
“The exchange of professional experiences will foster the development of dialogue between our countries on energy matters,” stressed the Russian Energy Minister.
Cuba is currently facing serious problems in its electrical system, causing blackouts in up to 40% of the country, due to the lack of fuel needed by terrestrial thermoelectric plants to generate electricity and the breakdowns and maintenance of several units of these plants. , which have been in operation for more than four decades.
The Cuban Government has rented several floating power plants (of which currently only five remain) to alleviate the lack of generation capacity, a quick but temporary, polluting and expensive solution.
The blackouts hamper the economic performance of Cuba, which has been mired in a serious crisis for four years.
They have also been the trigger for the anti-government protests in recent years, including those on July 11, 2021 – the largest in decades – and those on March 17 in Santiago de Cuba (east) and other locations.
Cuba and Russia advocate strengthening economic relations (+Photos)
Legislators from Cuba and Russia today ratified the desire to strengthen the strategic partnership between the two nations, especially in economic, commercial and financial matters.
This disposition was expressed during a virtual exchange between the president of the Economic Affairs Commission of the National Assembly of People’s Power, Félix Martínez, and Alexander Babakov, vice president of the State Duma of the Russian Federal Assembly.
Alexander Babakov described Cuba as a model of firmness, resistance and integrity, and expressed his energetic rejection of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States Government against the island.
Martínez said that the Cuban-Russian Intergovernmental Commission for Economic-Commercial and Scientific-Technical Collaboration constitutes the main mechanism for monitoring bilateral projects identified by both parties.
Regarding the significance of this work meeting, he stated that it is about the monitoring and support from the two parliaments to strategic and high priority issues, which cover key sectors of the Economic and Social Development Plan of Cuba, and others of mutual interest.
The agreements that we adopted at last year’s meeting in Havana have had follow-up and attention by the corresponding organizations, and evaluation by the Intergovernmental Commission, he stressed.
Directors of the Financial Market Committee of the State Duma also participated in the meeting on the Russian side, while Teresa González, vice president of the Parliament’s Economic Affairs Commission, and authorities from several ministries were also present on the Cuban side.
Source: Cubainformation
