Cuba cancelled its annual cigar festival, a key driver of tourism and foreign currency, as it grapples with a major energy crisis sparked by a tightening US embargo.
Oil imports from Venezuela have ceased since Washington toppled its leader last month, cutting Cuba’s main source of energy. As a result, the island nation has had to shutter parts of its economy, while public services are struggling to operate.
The fuel crisis is so grave that in some areas, large numbers of people are reliant on a limited number of EVs. Renewable energy is “helping the country move forward,” a Havana resident told Reuters. “Otherwise, we would be completely paralyzed.”