Mexico's Pemex exported 20,000 bpd of crude, fuel to Cuba in second half of 2023

MEXICO CITY, May 2 (Reuters) - Mexico's state oil company Pemex exported about 20,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude and refined products to Cuba in the second half of 2023 through a company it owns, according to a filing this week in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has said that his government would support Cuba however it can, and that the Communist-run island suffers from an inhumane and unjust blockade.

"Since July 2023, Gasolinas Bienestar... our wholly-owned subsidiary, acquires crude oil and petroleum products from certain of our affiliates for export to the Republic of Cuba," Pemex said in the filing.

The filing, which was first reported by Mexican newspaper El Universal, was published on Tuesday.

Between July and the end of December, Gasolinas Bienestar exported 16,800 bpd of crude and 3,300 bpd of refined products valued at 6.3 billion pesos (some $400 million), Pemex said in the report.

Pemex did not immediately respond to queries about whether exports have continued this year, although shipping data shows they have not been interrupted.

The reported sales by Gasolinas Bienestar were made using peso-denominated contracts and valued at market prices, Pemex said. The company added in the report that it has "procedures in place to ensure such sales are carried out in compliance with applicable law."

During his administration, Lopez Obrador has supported Pemex in many ways, including through capital injections and tax reduction. Its production of crude and condensate stood at 1.8 million bpd at the end of last quarter. (Reporting by Ana Isabel Martinez and Kylie Madry Writing by Stefanie Eschenbacher; editing by Barbara Lewis)