A report by the consulting firm Auge states that “96.4% of small and medium-sized private enterprises face an impact ranging from severe to catastrophic due to the fuel shortage.”
14ymedio, Havana, February 20, 2026 – Some customers call it “La Navecita” (The Little Ship), because it is smaller and emerged after La Nave, the famous “Cuban Uber.” But the popularity it earned among travelers, thanks to lower prices and because, unlike its predecessor, it could be booked without relying on difficult internet access, is of little use now. Today, these private transportation agencies are among the hardest hit by the fuel crisis, worsened by the U.S. oil squeeze. “We only have two cars operating this Tuesday,” the operator’s voice told an impatient customer waiting to travel from Nuevo Vedado to Old Havana.
According to one of its managers, “more than 80% of La Navecita’s drivers have stopped accepting passengers in the last month.” Until a few weeks ago, it was enough to call a couple of mobile numbers and provide trip details: destination, currency for payment, number of passengers, and whether there were suitcases or pets. In a brief conversation, the client was informed of the price and, if accepted, within minutes a white Lada, a red Moskvich, or a modern Citroën would pick them up at their door.
Everything changed last January when the U.S. intervened in Venezuela, captured Nicolás Maduro, decreed the end of fuel shipments to Cuba from Caracas and threatened tariffs on countries that did so. “At first, gasoline was only available in dollars, and that pushed many drivers out of the business,” the source says. Drivers pay a fee to be included in the daily schedule and then transfer a percentage of their earnings per trip to the owners of the small enterprise. But they can’t say in the morning, “I’m ready to pick up passengers” if they do not have fuel or certainty that they will soon obtain it. No one in Havana right now can have that certainty.”
But they can’t say in the morning, “I’m ready to pick up passengers” if they do not have fuel or certainty that they will soon obtain it. No one in Havana right now can have that certainty
“We were doing well, we were growing and pushing out some competitors, but right now we’re considering shutting down operations,” the manager admits. “Just paying the operators’ salaries, license fees, and other costs takes a lot of money, and we don’t have enough drivers on the road to recover it.” Although they have added electric tricycles and even motorcycles to their fleet, “we can’t make up for what we’ve lost because we used to do many long trips, take people to the airport, and get lots of requests at dawn. We can’t guarantee any of that anymore.”
La Navecita’s case mirrors that of the vast majority of small businesses on the Island. According to a report signed by Oniel Díaz Castellanos and published by the consulting firm Auge, the oil shortage affects more than 96% of Cuban small and medium-sized private enterprises [SMEs or mipymes in Spanish]. “When blackouts in Cuba reach 20 hours a day and fuel on the black market exceeds six dollars per liter, thousands of Cuban entrepreneurs ask the same question: Can my business survive this energy crisis?”
Using data from the National Office of Statistics and Information (Onei), the consultant maps the 9,236 private enterprises registered in the country as of 2024, explaining where they are concentrated and which may be most harmed by this unprecedented crisis that is worse than even the darkest moments of the Special Period. He notes that 43% of the private business sector is concentrated in Havana, meaning “what happens in the capital — blackouts, fuel availability, import measures — will determine the fate of nearly 4,000 companies.”
Díaz Castellanos classifies firms into three levels of dependency — critical, high, and moderate — based on their activity and how much they can survive without fuel. The first group cannot survive at all, such as a textile workshop “that cannot turn on its machines,” or a restaurant “that loses all its inventory if refrigeration fails.” The second group can operate without electricity but at significantly reduced capacity, such as a store selling non-perishable goods that can function “only in daylight” and cannot sell fresh products. The third group can survive despite disruptions. This could include, for example, a consultant who can work with a laptop and small devices, as long as there is an opportunity to charge them at some point.
The list leads to a “forceful” conclusion: “96.4% of Cuban private small and medium-sized enterprises (8,904 companies) face an impact ranging from severe to catastrophic due to the fuel shortage.”
The consultant recalls that the First Business Climate Study for Cuban SMEs, conducted by Auge last December, already showed that the energy crisis “was a central concern.” Although managers “trusted their internal capacity,” they “distrusted the environment.” In effect, in that report, 76% of surveyed entrepreneurs said they felt optimistic or very optimistic about 2026, while 60% predicted that the national economy would be somewhat or much worse this year.
In effect, in that report, 76% of surveyed entrepreneurs said they felt optimistic or very optimistic about 2026, while 60% predicted that the national economy would be somewhat or much worse this year.
“While a significant portion of companies acknowledge having improved or maintained their situation in 2025 thanks to their own efforts, most foresee a decidedly pessimistic national outlook for 2026,” Díaz Castellanos writes. “The energy crisis has confirmed that pessimism: no matter how much individual effort is made, if the energy system collapses, the business collapses with it.”
The consultant does not mention the factors that have worsened the energy crisis or propose possible solutions, but announces that this article will be the first of several. Future installments, he says, will address specific impacts in each sector, who can actually access direct fuel imports, and “practical recommendations for entrepreneurs trying to keep their businesses afloat in this scenario.”
Hugo, a small shopkeeper in Havana, sees only one solution: “put everything on hold until the worst passes.” His business, a food and beverage shop near Ayestarán Street and 20 de Mayo in the Cerro municipality, had imported beer as its star product, which “had managed to maintain a low price compared to other stores in this neighborhood.” He sold it for between 230 and 260 pesos but can no longer sustain that price.
“A supplier brought me that beer directly from the port of Mariel, from a Chinese company located there.” With few intermediaries and quick transport, Hugo was able to keep prices lower than the 300 or 350 pesos typically charged for imported beer in his area. “For months I was earning quite a bit because everyone knew I had the cheapest beer and it was always cold,” he recalls.
The rest of the food he sells in his small shop cannot make up for the lost beer revenue. “I promised my wife that in March I will liquidate everything if the partner who picks up the goods in Mariel can’t stabilize fuel supplies.”
Translated by Regina Anavy
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