In Cuba’s Sancti Spiritus Province, factories making cookies, sweets and other floury foods have been closed. The weight of bread sold through the ration book was reduced from 80 grams to 60. During peak electrical hours all production processes stop while offices may use electricity only until 11:00 am. Urban transportation will only operate in morning and afternoon.[1]
The authorities of Santiago de Cuba imposed a drastic reduction outside working hours of trips by urban buses, trains and boats.
The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Planning, Alejandro Gil Fernández, acknowledged, “We will not be able to maintain the same levels of transportation” except for ambulances, obituaries, tourism and shipment of merchandise.
“Faced with the complex situation that Cuba faces with the fuel deficit, the member of the Political Bureau of the Party and Prime Minister, Manuel Marrero Cruz, . . . called for extreme compliance with the measures. energy savings that apply to all sectors and actors in the economy: ‘This battle requires the active participation of everyone,’ he expressed.”
There was at least one item of good news. “The drilling of a third gas well that will increase the electricity generation of the mixed company Energás sa concluded this September, as planned, reported the Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, on national TV.”[2]
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[1] The bread in the warehouse shrinks in Cuba due to the ‘energy contingency,’ Diario de Cuba (Sept. 30, 2023), Two daily trips by bus: Santiago de Cuba passengers already suffer from the energy ‘contingency,’ Diario de Cuba (Sept. 29, 2023),
[2] A third gas well will allow adding megawatts to electricity generation, Granma (Sept. 29, 2023),
