Russian companies will be able to operate enterprises in Cuba. What does this mean?
Russian companies in Cuba will be able to manage industrial plants, the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade announced on April 10. Previously, Russian investors, without guarantees of direct control over investments, looked at the island with caution. What prospects open up in Cuba for Russian companies can be found in the Izvestia article.
Prospects for Russian companies
• The ability to get companies under direct management means legal guarantees for investors and a reduction in the risk of non-payments. Such an opportunity for Russian investors has been discussed since the end of 2025. In October 2025, Russian business gained control of a Cuban non-industrial asset: the hotel company of AFK Sistema Corporation and the tourism division of the Cuban Army business conglomerate GAESA signed an agreement to manage the five-star Sierra Cristal Hotel in Holguin province. But in February, due to the Cuban energy crisis, Russia stopped flights to the island until the situation stabilized.
• Cuba is not only a promising tourist destination, but also a partner of Russia in the development of new treatment methods: on April 1, 2026, a memorandum was signed between the Russian company Promomed and the Cuban Center for Molecular Immunology on the joint development of a multivalent cancer vaccine. Russia is also a supplier of components for the production of medicines — in 2025, six tons of raw materials were shipped to Cuba.
• The Cuban market is of interest to the Russian food sector — about 90 companies are ready to supply meat, dairy and fish products to Cuba. Automakers also consider the Cuban market to be promising — at the FIHAV Havana International Fair in November 2025, Gorky Automobile Plant announced its intention to resume car assembly on the island and open its dealership. Currently, the work of the UAZ assembly plant at the Cuban EISA enterprise has been suspended due to the island's energy blockade. In 2025, as part of cooperation with Cuba, the Moscow City Hall promised to create a taxi company in Havana with 50 Moskvich cars, half of which will be electric cars — this project is also planned to be implemented in the near future.
Russian aid to Cuba
• Russia is already providing humanitarian supplies of energy resources to Cuba, which has suffered from the energy blockade by the United States: the tanker Anatoly Kolodkin delivered 100,000 tons of crude oil to the island on March 30. Despite the threat of the UK to block the tankers of the "Russian shadow fleet", the vessel crossed the route unhindered. In the English Channel, where the border between France and Great Britain runs, he was accompanied by the Baltic Fleet corvette warship "Savvy". At the end of March, it was reported that preparations were underway to ship another shipment of oil to Cuba. The United States has stated that it does not object to humanitarian fuel supplies to the island.
• The decision to help the republic was made not only at the level of the Russian government. In 2025, the Moscow City Hall, in cooperation with Cuba, transferred 10 Moskvich vehicles to the island — the vehicles were intended for use in medical and educational institutions.
• In 2011, the Russian state-owned company Zarubezhneft signed a 25-year contract with the Cuban petroleum Unión Cuba Petróleo (CUPET) for pilot production and additional exploration of the Boca de Haruco ultra-viscous oil field. The project assumed investments from the Russian side and the subsequent cost recovery upon reaching industrial production volumes. Thanks to the Russian technology of catalytic aquathermolysis, production at some wells in Boca de Haruco increased 1.5 times, and exploration provided Havana with additional 200 million tons of geological oil reserves. The Russian side's investments in the first stage of the project amounted to about $133 million. Russia also intends to invest more than $1 billion in the development of the island's infrastructure by 2030, these funds will also be used for the construction and modernization of power plants.
• Cuba has become a record holder in the history of Russia in terms of written-off debts. In 2014, 90% of the island's debt ($31.7 billion) was written off, and the remaining $3.5 billion was due to be repaid over 20 years. Most of Cuba's debt to Russia was formed back in Soviet times, when refunds were not actually expected.
The benefits of cooperation with Cuba
• The island is a promising market for trade and investment. Russia exports many times more goods to Cuba than it imports from the island, which provides Moscow with a positive trade balance between the countries. Due to US sanctions, Havana is forced to abandon the dollar and conducts settlements in national currencies and barter.
Cuba is an important strategic and ideological ally of Russia in Latin America and the Caribbean. Thanks to the long-term cooperation between the two countries, Russia maintains its presence in the Western Hemisphere, which is a deterrent for the United States. In October 2025, the agreement on military cooperation between Russia and Cuba was ratified for a five-year period with subsequent automatic extension.
What does this mean?
• The fact that Russian businesses will be able to manage the industrial enterprises they invest in in Cuba will ensure predictable returns on investment and more reliable control over production. In the future, the export of Russian production and management culture will improve Cuban business, reduce costs and strengthen relations between the two countries. In addition, strengthening economic ties opens up the Latin American and Caribbean markets for Russian suppliers.
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