Havana, Jan. 31 (EFE) – A cyber attack on gas stations forced the Cuban government to postpone a planned increase in fuel prices of more than 400%, the government announced Wednesday.
In an unexpected intervention on Cuban television, the Ministry of Economy said that a virus that allegedly originated from abroad had affected the cybersecurity of gas stations.
“There will be no interruption in the services we provide for the sale of fuel,” said Mildrey Granadillo, first deputy minister.
Granadillo added that the government will announce the new date for the price hike to take effect “when the conditions are right” and did not give a specific date.
The increase in the cost of gasoline and diesel – and the introduction of gas stations in foreign currency for tourists – forms part of an adjustment plan to try to stabilize the Cuban economy after more than three years of crisis.
Before Wednesday’s reversal, Cuba was about to increase fuel prices fivefold. Regular gasoline was to go from the current 25 pesos (CUP) to 132 (from $0.21 to $1.1, at the official dollar exchange rate for individuals).
This means that Cubans will have to pay 5,280 CUP (44 dollars) to fill a 40-liter tank, while the average state salary barely exceeds 4,200 CUP (35 dollars at the official exchange rate, but 14.5 in the widespread informal market).
The fuel price hike is just one of the first measures to be implemented as part of a major adjustment plan announced by the government in December, aimed at reversing the course of an economy that ended 2023 with a GDP contraction of between 1 and 2 percent and a projected fiscal deficit of 18.5 percent for that year.
The Cuban government also intends to increase interprovincial transportation fares by up to 600%, cap maximum pensions, increase the cost of services such as electricity, water and gas cylinders, and replace blanket subsidies for products with specific aid for the most vulnerable sectors of the population.
According to President Miguel Díaz-Canel, the package is designed to correct “distortions” in the island’s impoverished economy, while assuring that work will be done to ensure that “no one is left behind.”
Faced with complaints and criticism in social networks and independent media, the government has maintained that the measures are not part of a “neoliberal plan” or shock plan, and has defended that it is seeking economic recovery. EFE
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