Claudia Sheinbaum, the President of Mexico, announced during a press conference on Wednesday that she is evaluating the possibility of supplying fuel to Cuba as a humanitarian effort to alleviate the ongoing blackouts plaguing the island following last Friday's collapse of its National Electric System (SEN). "We're looking into it; we have helped Cuba before, and we're considering whether fuel aid is necessary as humanitarian assistance, to support the Cuban people," the president stated.
In 2023, Mexico reportedly sent at least $200 million worth of oil to Cuba, according to estimates by the University of Texas Energy Institute, accessed by EFE on September 30 last year. However, Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) denied that this was a donation. Sheinbaum emphasized that the current aid to Cuba is limited to "technical support" from the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), highlighting Mexico's ongoing financial support for the Cuban regime, under both former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and the current administration.
"We will always support [Cuba], so CFE is in contact through the Foreign Ministry to provide whatever the Cuban people need, primarily technical support," Sheinbaum reiterated.
According to forecasts by Cuba's state-run Unión Eléctrica (UNE)
The blackouts are primarily due to a shortage of fuel, stemming from the lack of foreign currency for imports, and ongoing failures in the country's aging thermoelectric plants, which have been in operation for over four decades and suffer from chronic underinvestment. Sheinbaum, who took office on October 1, has previously stated that Mexico "always provides humanitarian aid" and noted that "Mexico has always opposed the blockade, except for some presidents during the neoliberal period who had different positions." The Mexican government announced on Monday its willingness to offer technical support to Cuba after the massive blackout left the island without power since Friday. The offer, communicated by the Mexican Foreign Ministry, includes assistance from the CFE, the successor to the Mexican Electricians Union 'Luz y Fuerza del Centro', a long-standing ally of the Cuban regime.