Cuba Turns to Local Crude to Counter Oil Blockade

Cuba will start processing local crude oil without imported diluents, which the island is struggling to acquire as a result of Trump’s oil blockade, state-run newspaper Granma reported.

Cuba produces around 40% of the crude it needs to power the nation, but Cuban crude is dense, viscous and rich in sulfur. Its processing has so far relied on imported naphtha, another oil derivative. 

Without access to naphtha, Cuban refineries are instead starting to use thermoconversion, or controlled heating. The Hermanos Díaz refinery, in Santiago de Cuba, has already successfully implemented the process. A second plant is currently being prepared to follow suit.

This new practice, as well as the installation of thousands of solar panels, seeks to reduce Cuban dependence on imported oil. 

Over the past two weeks, blackouts in Cuba have significantly reduced following the arrival of Russian tanker Anatoly Kolodkin carrying approximately 700,000 barrels of crude. However, that was the first tanker to reach the island since January and no other has arrived since.