Russia offered Cuba a donation of 80,000 tons of diesel and equipment worth $62 million to shore up the energy sector, the island’s official media reported on Friday.
The proposal comes at a time when the island is going through a severe energy crisis caused by the passage of two cyclones, but which worsened due to the chronic lack of fuel on the island and the constant breakdowns of its old thermoelectric plants.
According to the official Prensa Latina agency, the initiative was delivered to President Miguel Díaz by the Russian Vice President, Dmitri Chernyshenko, who participated in a bilateral meeting, and was carried out “on instructions” from President Vladimir Putin.
In addition, Chernyshenko indicated that repair kits for damaged equipment will be sent.
Cuba was hit on Wednesday by Hurricane Rafael with Category 3 force, which crossed it from south to northwest and whose strong winds caused a disconnection of the national energy system, so vast sectors of Havana and the west of the country still on Friday They were still in the dark.
Two weeks earlier there had been another blackout, this time due to a breakdown in a power plant, and two days later Cubans experienced the passage of another cyclone, Oscar, which left eight dead. These meteorological events are usually very costly in infrastructure, due to falling poles and cables, and damaged transformers, among other incidents.
The Cuban government said that it had also received offers of cooperation from countries such as Mexico, China, Colombia, Venezuela and the United Nations system.
Chernyshenko arrived in Cuba from Venezuela, where he met with the president of that country, Nicolás Maduro.
Cuba, Venezuela and Russia are political allies and agree to reject the United States sanctions, which in the case of the island seek to change its government model.
Connect with the Voice of America! Subscribe to our channelsYouTube, WhatsApp and to newsletter. Turn on notifications and follow us on Facebook, x and instagram.
Add Comment