Cuba import data casts doubt on official 'fuel crisis' explanation
By Dave Sherwood and Marianna Parraga
HAVANA/HOUSTON (Reuters) — At a small cafe in the town of Bejucal outside of Havana, owner Germán Martín tries to organize his life and business around increasingly frequent blackouts. It is not easy.
Although occasional outages are a fact of life in Cuba, it has gotten worse lately, says Martin. Sometimes the power goes out for four hours, or six, unusual for a time of year when cooler weather normally means lower demand and fewer outages.
«You learn to adapt, but its uncomfortable and bothersome,» he said as he scrambled to prepare meals in the half-light.
Government officials blame a lack of fuel to feed thermoelectric power plants, a shortage that now affects nearly all facets of daily life on the communist-run island.
On Saturday, the government suspended all sports tournaments — including popular national baseball and soccer league games — until further notice, citing a lack of public transportation due to the «fuel crisis».
Long lines have formed at gas stations, many of which have been without supplies for days.
And the country's power grid is running deficits at times over one-third of total demand, leading to hours-long blackouts across much of the island.
The government says U.S. sanctions, which have for decades complicated financial transactions and the purchase of fuel by Cuba, have combined with an increasingly acute economic crisis to bring the fuel shortfall to a head.
But a Reuters tally of fuel bought by the Caribbean island and delivered to its ports suggests that a lack of supplies may be less of a problem than internal infrastructure and logistics issues.
Cuba's economy demands about 125,000 barrels per day of fuels, including motor gasoline, diesel and fuel oil
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