Mexico Provided Cuba with Power Plant Equipment Worth Millions, Report Finds

The Mexican government gifted Cuba electrical equipment and components valued at 12.8 million pesos (over $700,000) as humanitarian aid following the impact of Hurricane Ian in 2022, according to an investigation by Latinus. Under the title "The Millionaire Gift from CFE to the Cuban Government: Tons of Power Plant Equipment Sent as Humanitarian Aid," journalist Mario Gutiérrez Vega revealed the details of this "courtesy" from President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration.

The Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), led by Manuel Bartlet, sent thousands of specialized pieces and equipment from its facilities to the Cuban Ministry of Energy and Mines. The report states that the state company made an initial delivery of materials to assist the government of Miguel Díaz-Canel after Hurricane Ian struck the island on September 27, 2022. "Five months later, when the electrical service in Cuba had already been restored, the CFE made two additional deliveries, claiming the emergency persisted," the report adds.

The deliveries were processed as donations to Energoimport, a company under the Cuban Ministry of Energy and Mines. The aim was to circumvent the commercial and financial embargo imposed by the United States on the island, which penalizes companies doing business with the Cuban government. Data from the investigation indicate that on February 27, 2023, the CFE removed three valves worth 4.7 million pesos from the Adolfo López Mateos thermoelectric plant in Tuxpan, Veracruz, and sent them to the Antonio Guiteras Thermoelectric Plant in Matanzas.

On April 21 of the same year, another donation was dispatched from the same Mexican power plant to Cuba. This shipment included 1,000 square meters of metal roofing and 16 items such as regulators, gates, industrial switches, and hydrogen coolers, all valued at 482,000 pesos (approximately $25,000). Latinus confirmed that these shipments did not impair the functioning of the Mexican power plant.

Besides electrical materials, the CFE sent 16 specialists to Cuba to help restore the electrical service after Hurricane Ian. "The workers traveled to Cuba on September 28 and 29, 2022, with most returning to Mexico by October 10," the report details. The Mexican Secretariat of National Defense conducted 16 flights to deliver the initial batch of goods, which included 69,000 meters of cable valued at 3.5 million pesos (nearly $200,000) and over 9,000 insulators worth an estimated 3.2 million pesos (almost $18,000).

Although the report is presented in the Mexican context, it's essential to note that Hurricane Ian made landfall in Cuba on the early morning of September 27, leaving the provinces of Pinar del Río and Artemisa, along with the special municipality of Isla de la Juventud, without electricity. Two days after the meteorological event, which resulted in three deaths on the island, President López Obrador stated in a morning conference that Cuba had always been very supportive of Mexico, and they would not "leave them alone."

Days later, it was revealed that the Mexican government had sent electrical materials and specialized personnel to Cuba to address the damage in the western part of the country. Over 72,000 meters of cable, 7,000 insulators, and other resources arrived on the island, according to former Deputy Minister of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment, Ana Teresita González Fraga. Despite the arrival of these supplies, the recovery on the island lasted months, and in terms of housing, many people affected by the cyclone have yet to recover, suffering from neglect by the Havana regime.

Mexican aid was supplemented by support from Nicolás Maduro’s government, and international organizations like the Red Cross, UNDP, and the PAHO also made proposals to supply resources to Cuba. Members of Cuban civil society, artists, and Cubans living abroad joined in support initiatives during the catastrophe.