By Perla Velasco | Journalist & Industry Analyst – Mexico Business News Thu, 08/21/2025

In 2025, Mexico reached a new high in its oil shipments to Cuba. Between May 29 and June 27, PEMEX delivered 39 shipments of crude and refined products to Havana, with a total value exceeding US$850 million. These deliveries included 10.2MMb and 132.5 million L of products such as jet fuel, diesel, and gasoline, representing the largest monthly volume of Mexican oil exports to Cuba to date. This volume nearly matches the total value of oil exports from Mexico to Cuba over the previous two years, which amounted to approximately US$1 billion.

The oil was exported through Fuel Stations for Well-Being, a subsidiary of PEMEX established to manage these operations. Most shipments departed from customs in Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, with one shipment leaving from the port of Tampico, Tamaulipas, carrying 6.8 million L of diesel. Satellite tracking confirmed that shipments continued into July, underscoring Mexico’s sustained support for Cuba during this critical period. 

This surge in exports comes amid Cuba’s escalating energy crisis, characterized by prolonged and widespread power outages. The Cuban government attributes these challenges to ongoing US sanctions, which have hindered its ability to secure energy resources. In response, Mexico has increased its support, with shipments continuing into 2025.

The decision to escalate oil exports to Cuba has been met with both support and criticism. Supporters argue that the shipments are a humanitarian gesture aimed at alleviating Cuba’s energy shortages. They highlight the longstanding diplomatic and economic ties between the two nations, emphasizing the importance of solidarity in times of crisis. Critics, however, contend that the increased exports could expose Mexico to potential sanctions from the United States, given the existing embargo on Cuba. They also question the financial implications for PEMEX, which is already grappling with significant debt and declining oil production.

Despite these concerns, the Mexican government has defended its actions, framing the oil exports as legitimate trade agreements rather than acts of charity. President Claudia Sheinbaum reiterated Mexico’s commitment to supporting Cuba, stating that the country produces between 1.6 to 1.8MMb/d, making the shipments a manageable endeavor. She emphasized that these exports are part of Mexico’s broader foreign policy objectives, which include advocating for the suspension of US sanctions against Cuba.

From an economic perspective, the oil exports to Cuba represent a modest but significant portion of PEMEX’s overall operations. In 1Q25, shipments to Cuba accounted for 3.3% of PEMEX’s crude oil exports and 1.9% of its refined product sales. While these figures are relatively small in the context of PEMEX’s global activities, they underscore the strategic importance of the Cuba-Mexico energy relationship. 

Looking ahead, the trajectory of oil exports from Mexico to Cuba will likely depend on several factors, including the resolution of Cuba’s energy crisis, the geopolitical dynamics surrounding US sanctions, and the economic health of PEMEX. However, the record-breaking shipments in 2025 signal a deepening of the energy partnership between the two nations. This development not only highlights Mexico’s role as a key energy supplier in the region but also reflects its broader foreign policy stance, characterized by a commitment to regional solidarity and opposition to unilateral sanctions.

August 22, 2025 — Belly of the Beast

In Cuba, a lot of families get by renting rooms in their own homes to tourists. These B&Bs (or casas particulares, as they’re known in Cuba) sustain communities, create local jobs and offer travelers an authentic cultural experience.

The business was booming after Obama’s opening with Cuba in 2014.

But U.S. sanctions have decimated Cuba’s tourism industry, greatly reducing the number of visitors and cutting Cuban homeowners off from booking services like Airbnb and Expedia.

Hear from the Cuban entrepreneurs themselves about how their businesses have been impacted in our latest video.

​Countless Cuban families once relied on tourism for their livelihoods. Not long after Obama’s opening with Cuba in 2014, Cuba was welcoming over 4 million visitors per year. That number has been cut in half. Cuban B&B’s (or casas particulares, as they’re known in Cuba) sustain communities, create local jobs, and offer travelers an authentic cultural experience. But the business has been decimated by U.S. sanctions. Trump’s sanctions banned cruise ships, restricted flights, and placed Cuba back on the U.S. ”State sponsors of terrorism” blacklist, changing everything. Airbnb stopped paying Cuban hosts without international accounts, and Expedia was forced to halt its operations. The result? Today, ordinary Cubans are paying the price. B&B’s in Cuba are now empty. Families are struggling to survive without their only source of income.

Madrid, Aug 21 (Prensa Latina) Various materials make up the third solidarity container this year for Cuba from Valencia, Spain, which will depart for the Cuban port of Mariel at the end of August, it was reported.

The shipment, worth 70,000 euros, is intended to support the soup kitchen and socio-health care of the Quisicuaba community project, reported to Prensa Latina by the media outlet Cubainformación.

The medical materials and work equipment were donated by the Valencian city council of Guadassuar (Ribera Alta), the Communist Party of the Valencian Country, volunteer associations such as Corazon Expres (Marina Baixa), and numerous individuals from municipalities such as Bétera, L’Alfàs del Pi, and Valencia.

Thanks to 26 financial contributions from various organizations such as the Rotary Club and Giving4Giving, along with the collaboration of the L’Alfàs del Pi city council and individuals, 3,500 euros were raised for the purchase of food and other materials.

The shipment and coordination of its shipment to the Caribbean island were sponsored by Euskadi Cuba, the Ernesto Guevara Association of Torrejón de Ardoz (Madrid), and the Valencian Jose Marti Friendship Association with Cuba, all members of the MESC (State Movement of Solidarity with Cuba).

Dedicated to the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, the container includes, in addition to food, various medical supplies, intended to support the care provided to the Centro Habana community of the Quisicuaba project, especially to the elderly and those at risk of social exclusion.

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Havana, Aug 21 (Prensa Latina) Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel denounced the United States government’s attempts to divide the nations of the region through pressure and blockades.

In a message on the social media platform X, the president affirmed that Washington seeks to “weaken us with hate speech and destabilizing actions, but our history is marked by the resistance and victory of united peoples.”

The president also made this statement the day before when speaking at the 13th Extraordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America-People’s Trade Agreement (ALBA-TCP).

In his speech, Diaz-Canel described the threat of aggression and violation of the sovereignty of Latin American and Caribbean countries by the US government as unacceptable, which disrupts peace and cooperation in the region.

“We denounce with equal firmness the encouragement and financing of terrorist plans against Venezuela, as well as the false accusations leveled by the United States government against President Nicolas Maduro,” he stated.

Diaz-Canel, who urged the defense of peace and peaceful coexistence among member states as an inalienable right and from realistic positions, emphasized: “The threats looming over Venezuela today are based on the same philosophy of dispossession that has turned a small strip of land into the hell of this world.”

Likewise, he considered it necessary to drive the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States’ denunciation of “the new colonizing attempt,” and therefore reaffirmed the importance of holding an extraordinary meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers.

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