There is no disputing the fact that Cuba is still experiencing a severe energy crisis. And since its own oil production is wholly insufficient, it has to rely heavily on expensive imported crude.
The price of petrol in Cuba experienced a noticeable price increase in early March — after having been abruptly cancelled in February. One litre of gasoline now goes for US$1.30 and US$1.10 for a litre of diesel.
I did not, however, see long lines of cars in May seeking scarce fuel or the string of closed gasoline stations that I witnessed last year. (I did notice a gas station in Varadero that was strictly charging U.S. dollars for those plying the tourism trade.) But these things are subject to change at any moment in Cuba.
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Cuba’s nuclear reactor in Juragua, May 2024.
Still, all of these rising costs have obviously taken their toll on the Cuban people. I saw lots of Cubans hitch-hiking along the sides of the road, horse and buggy sightings were plentiful and cases where school children were loaded onto the back of a transport truck for the ride home.
Moreover, the blackouts and electricity rationing from last year are still a recurring problem. Cubans can go for five or six hours without power, have it turned on for a few hours at a time, and then switched off again — or they can have absolutely no electricity for 20 hours a day.
One of the reasons why I travelled to Cienfuegos was to see one of the largest renewable solar panel fields in Cantarrana, Cuba — numbering something like 14,000-plus units (and produced in western Cuba). I did see other smaller solar panel installations in two other areas (there are large wind turbines as well in eastern Cuba) as I made way to Cienfuegos or the so-called “Pearl of the South.” These renewable energy efforts are not going to solve Cuba’s acute energy challenges, but they are definitely a step in the right direction.
The second reason for going to Cienfuegos was to visit the small town of Juragua on the outer rim of the city. This is the place where the former Soviet Union had constructed what is today the huge shell of two nuclear reactors. And when you take in all the various buildings, water cooling apparatus and cement retaining walls, it is quite a sprawling complex.
Interestingly, the Soviet angle here shines a bright light on the on again, off again nature of Cuba-Russia relations. It’s my understanding that the abrupt termination of the reactor project was the by-product of an increasingly dysfunctional personal relationship between Fidel Castro and then-Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev.
You see, Gorbachev wanted Cuba to implement many of the changes that he had proposed under his domestic policy initiatives of “perestroika” (restructuring) and “glasnost” (opening). And when Fidel firmly rebuffed these importunities, Gorbachev eventually yanked the funding for the nuclear reactor project.
The Cubans that I spoke to about the reactor all basically said the same thing — that is, that this facility was clearly Fidel Castro’s “dream/fantasy project.” (Naturally, the United States, which has not forgotten the near-nuclear Armageddon of the Cuban Missile Crisis, was less than thrilled with the prospect of a nuclear reactor 90 miles away.) Though a pressurized water reactor project, and thus unlike the nuclear reactor that exploded in Chernobyl, Ukraine in April 1986, it was supposed to produce 25 per cent of Cuba’s entire electrical needs.
With the project essentially frozen (and obviously deteriorating), the reactor core has been sitting idle for over 30 years. What I saw was a few Cuban workers breaking up the concrete, dislodging the rebar and searching for any useable metal.
But could the Juragua facility be modernized, refurbished or salvaged to meet some of Cuba’s energy requirements today? That’s the question that I posed to anyone who would listen.
Many of the Cubans tended to respond with a strange look on their face. “Where would the money come from to revitalize the facility?” one deadpanned. The consensus reply appeared to be: “You must be kidding mi amigo.”
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Another raised questions about whether Cuba has the requisite capacity in terms of training, expertise and the proper complement of nuclear physicists and engineers. And he wondered out loud whether any refurbishing effort could be accomplished in a safe and secure manner.
Upon reflection, and even though Cuba is desperate for additional power supply, it does seem like a long shot. Perhaps the Juragua facility is too far gone and thus beyond salvaging.
Nonetheless, it may be worth at least conducting some sort of feasibility study. Might not a Canadian company be up to the task?
The critical question, though, still remains: how is Cuba going to meet its future energy needs? Relying on imported oil or diesel-generated electricity does not appear to be a realistic long-term solution. Could nuclear power be part of Cuba’s renewable power mix down the road? Who knows?
Peter McKenna is professor of political science at the University of Prince Edward Island in Charlottetown.
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Publish date : 2024-08-14 20:00:00
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