People are relying on other forms of transport in Cuba as US-imposed oil blockade cripples the country. Photo: ReutersCuba's national electric grid collapsed on Monday, the country's grid operator said, leaving around 10 million people without power amid a US-imposed oil blockade that has crippled the island's already obsolete generation system. US ​President Donald Trump cut off Venezuelan oil shipments to Cuba and threatened to slap tariffs on any country that sells oil to Cuba, strangling the Caribbean island's already antiquated grid. Venezuela, once Cuba's main oil supplier, has sent no fuel to the island this year. No large imports have entered this year through Cuba's main hubs of Matanzas or Moa, which typically handle crude for refining and fuel oil for power generation, according to satellite images analyzed by TankerTrackers.com.

Source: Otago Daily Times March 16, 2026 19:44 UTC