Not legal, tax, or investment advice — and not authorization for any transaction. U.S. sanctions (the Cuban Assets Control Regulations, 31 CFR Part 515) heavily restrict — and in most cases prohibit — dealings between U.S. persons and Cuba, including any form of investment or equity in a Cuban business. The rules are complex, fact-specific, and change; nothing on this site is a determination that any transaction is lawful. Structure anything Cuba-facing only with qualified OFAC sanctions counsel, and screen every party (names, entities, wallets) with QvaPay Sentinel.
Primary sources: OFAC Cuba Sanctions · 31 CFR Part 515 (CACR) · OFAC Cuba FAQs · Cuba Restricted List
CUPET — Cuba Petróleo Unión
aka CUPET, Cuba Petróleo
State oil & gas monopoly: refineries, the Matanzas supertanker base, onshore oil JVs. Counterparty to confiscated-refinery Title III exposure (Exxon/Belot).
Assets controlled (6)
Matanzas Supertanker Base
Reconstruction remains slow at the four-year mark. As of April 2026 Cupet reported one of four new China-backed tanks (tank 34) nearing weld/paint completion, but the May target passed with no confirmed finish and no definitive timeline to restore the
Boca de Jaruco / Varadero Oil Fields
EOR is the opportunity
Camilo Cienfuegos Oil Refinery
Modernization + feedstock opportunity
Port of Cienfuegos
Best natural deep harbor; refinery reactivated in 2026 processing Russian crude but lacks a vacuum tower/catalytic cracker, so yields low-value fuel oil. A pipeline upgrade to the Carlos Manuel de Cespedes power plant, initially 3.3 km, was expanded past 4 km
Belot Oil Refinery (Esso/Exxon)
ACTIVE Title III suit
Texaco Refinery (Santiago)
Confiscated 1960