Posted on 03/31/2026 10:06:27 PM PDT by Cronos
A Russia-flagged tanker carrying 730,000 barrels of oil has docked in Cuba, marking the first time in three months that an oil tanker has reached the island nation.
...The Anatoly Kolodkin entered the Bay of Matanzas under clear skies and light winds at sunrise. Much of the nearby city – and the majority of Cuba – was without power when the tanker arrived at the port area.
Cuba has not received an oil tanker in three months, according to President Miguel Diaz-Canel, exacerbating an energy crisis that has led to seemingly endless blackouts across the country of 10 million people and brought hospitals, public transportation, and farm production to the brink of collapse.
Cubans, including Energy and Mines Minister Vicente de la O Levy, cheered the ship’s arrival. A shortage of petroleum has exacerbated a deep economic crisis, leaving the population mired in long blackouts and facing severe shortages of food and medicine.
“Our gratitude to the Government and People of Russia for all the support we are receiving. A valuable shipment that arrives amidst the complex energy situation we are facing,” de la O Levy wrote on X.
The ship is carrying Russian Urals, a medium sour crude, which is a good fit for Cuba’s ageing refineries.
Cuba produces barely 40 percent of its required fuel and relies on imports to sustain its energy grid. Experts say the anticipated shipment could produce about 180,000 barrels of diesel, enough to feed Cuba’s daily demand for nine or 10 days
(Excerpt) Read more at aljazeera.com ...
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Is Cuba paying for it or are the Russians losing money in this trade?
No, Cuba is not paying for it. Moscow is “donating “ the oil.
Russian officials, including Energy Minister Sergei Tsivilev and Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, explicitly stated the fuel is being supplied as humanitarian aid to support life-support systems, hospitals, and electricity generation.
the estimated market value is approximately $84 million for the cargo
>>enough to feed Cuba’s daily demand for nine or 10 days
or 1 day if the code pinkos throw another solidarity rave and overload the grid again.
10 days? Not exactly a lifeline... That siad it’s ok with me. For now.
Y’all know we let it in.
We don’t want Cubans to die just the Socialist Commie ones.
but in their system that is probably who will get the oil.
I wonder:
1. Where did Moscow get the money to do this
2. How are they justifying it to their own population when they have put constraints on their own local economy
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