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Exploration and drilling for oil in Cuba - Is anyone making money? PDF Print E-mail
Written by Will Weissert   
It has been four years since U.S. experts said the island may sit atop nearly 10 billion barrels of deep-sea oil, revealing for Cuba an enormous economic Catch-22.

Cuba needs the technical expertise of major western oil companies to get to any of the unexploited crude. Yet on Feb. 7 the U.S. marked the 47th year of a trade embargo that has blocked producers with the technical ability to drill that deep, denying Cuba what could be a massive windfall.

A major discovery was supposed to transform Cuba into an oil exporter, drawing the foreign currency it needs to finance imports of food and machinery to modernize its communist economy and to raise stubborn state wages that average less than a dollar a day.

With public debts mounting, the government was forced to buy out its two main drilling partners from a 25-year deal, and even high-ranking officials say Cuba now imports about half the roughly 200,000 barrels of oil consumes a day at a discount from leftist ally Venezuela.

The embargo and world economic crisis have undermined some of the appeal of costly deep-water drilling off the island, and Cuba’s existing oil industry is floundering. Output is thought to have dropped by a quarter since 2003 as its top field, found by Russians in 1971, dries up.

There has been talk of President Barack Obama easing U.S. sanctions, which could unleash a flood of energy investment. But for now, analysts say most companies remain on the sidelines.

“It’s not a pretty picture,” said Jorge Pinon, a former president at Amoco Oil Latin America.

The U.S. Geological Survey in 2005 estimated that as much as 9.3 billion barrels of oil could lie off the island’s north coast, while Cuban geologists put that number at 20 billion barrels in October, said Rafael Tenreyro Perez, production manager at state oil company Cubapetroleo, or Cupet.

Experts widely dismissed the Cuban estimate, noting the government failed to disclose the methodology and data that would back up such a claim.
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Tampa Port Authority cautious on US Cuba shipping PDF Print E-mail
Written by TED JACKOVICS   
Tampa Port Authority commissioners on Thursday postponed a seemingly inevitable showdown on aggressively marketing Cuban trade after one of them volunteered to “go to Cuba tomorrow” while calling U.S.-Cuba policy “insane.”

Commissioner Carl Lindell, who rose to local prominence as a car dealer before becoming a developer, suggested the port send an emissary to Cuba to establish local trade interests.

“I’ll pay my own way,” Lindell said before the five other commissioners present chose to slow things down.

His proposal followed a brief presentation by Albert Fox Jr., president of the Alliance for Responsible Cuba Policy, at the board’s monthly meeting. Fox said that if the Port of Tampa took an aggressive stance on marketing Cuban trade, it could encourage change on federal policy that restricts exports to Cuba to food and agricultural products.

Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, also a port commissioner, sought more discussion for a proposal she said was not part of the port’s strategic plan. The board asked port staff to report back next month on Cuba trade issues.

Port director Richard Wainio said trade between Tampa and Cuba would require compliance with federal law, having cargo to ship and finding shippers.

“Maybe somebody is afraid of being criticized politically,” Lindell said after the meeting, referring to the authority’s apparent hesitancy.

Reporter Ted Jackovics can be reached at (813) 259-7817. havanajournal
 
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