Oil production:

Cuba produced 76,000 bbl/d of oil in 2006, while the country consumed 209,000 bbl/d. Cuba's oil production has increased significantly in the past two decades, with the country only producing 16,000 bbl/d in 1984. Most of Cuba's oil production occurs in the northern Matanzas province, resulting in a heavy, sour crude that requires special processing. Currently, two Canadian companies, Sherritt International and Pebercan, are producing oil in Cuba, under joint-venture production agreements with state-owned oil company Cubapetroleo (Cupet). Much of this production occurs onshore, though there is some offshore production in shallow coastal waters. Cuba’s oil production seems to have stabilized in the near term, with any additional increases in production dependent upon the discovery of substantial new reserves.

There has been considerable excitement over exploration activities in Cuba's offshore basins, especially its portion of the Gulf of Mexico. Industry analysts have reported that there could be at least 1.6 billion barrels of crude oil reserves in these basins. However, exploration activities have, so far, been disappointing. In 2001, Brazil's Petrobras abandoned exploration activities in Cuba's offshore basins following disappointing results. In July 2004, Repsol-YPF announced that its exploratory well in the Gulf of Mexico had discovered high-quality crude oil, however the company noted that it had not discovered commercially-viable quantities. In 2007, Cupet and Venezuela’s PdVSA concluded an agreement to jointly explore Cuba’s offshore areas, while Malaysia’s Petronas and India’s OVL reportedly conducted a seismic exploration program in the offshore basins.

Cuba Crude Oil Production and Consumption by Year

(Thousand Barrels per Day)

Cuba Coal Production and Consumption by Year

(Million Short Tons)