Cuba is facing a deepening energy crisis, with enough oil to last just 15 to 20 days at current consumption levels, the Financial Times reported Thursday.
The shortfall comes as the Trump administration intensifies pressure on the communist island and key suppliers appear to be cutting off shipments.
Data from analytics firm Kpler shows Cuba has received only one small oil delivery so far this year — a single shipment from Mexico on Jan. 9 totaling about 84,900 barrels.
That works out to just over 3,000 barrels per day, far below the roughly 37,000 barrels per day Cuba averaged from all suppliers last year, the Financial Times reported.
When combined with an estimated 460,000 barrels in storage at the start of the year, Cuba has fuel for no more than two to three weeks, Kpler analysts told the Financial Times.
Without new deliveries, the country could soon face severe rationing. Much of the island already experiences near-daily power blackouts.
President Donald Trump has vowed to cut off oil flows to Havana, saying earlier this week that the Cuban regime is “very close to failing.”
Energy expert Jorge Pinon of the University of Texas warned that Cuba faces a “major crisis” if shipments do not resume soon.
Mexico, Cuba’s largest oil supplier last year, appears to have paused a planned shipment.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum acknowledged reports of a delay, calling it a “sovereign decision,” while later insisting that exports had not fully stopped and could continue through state oil company Pemex or as humanitarian aid.
Analysts believe Cuba often received Mexican oil at steep discounts or even for free, the report said.
Venezuela, once Cuba’s primary energy lifeline, has sent no oil since early January. By mid-2025, Venezuela was the island’s only supplier of fuel oil, which is critical for electricity generation. The last such shipment arrived in November, according to Kpler.
The loss of Venezuelan oil has hit especially hard. Cuba’s struggling economy — already weakened by declining tourism, falling sugar production, and chronic shortages — depends heavily on subsidized energy.
Analysts cited by the Financial Times say the crisis could be existential for the regime.
Russia and Algeria, which have occasionally supplied oil in the past, have sent nothing recently. Russia’s last shipment was in October, while Algeria’s was nearly a year ago.
Trump said Tuesday that Cuba “will be failing pretty soon,” arguing that the regime can no longer rely on Venezuelan oil. Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel responded defiantly, posting on social media that outside threats would not break the island’s resolve.
“The harshness of these times and the brutality of the threats against Cuba will not hold us back,” he said in a post to X.
Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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