CubaNews articles from September 2002

CubaNews archives from September 2002

U.S. food expo in Havana could generate $150m in sales to Cuba, says organizer.
September 1, 2002... When a U.S. cargo plane lands later this month at Havana's Jose Marti International Airport, both CNN and "60 Minutes" will likely be waiting to film the animals as they emerge from their flying Noah's Ark into the tropical heat: two North...

White House may extend term of State Department's controversial Otto Reich.(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... Otto J. Reich, President Bush's controversial U.S. assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, may have his term extended until the end of 2004. Because key Democrats blocked Reich's nomination, the president in January...

Government still silent on arsenic spill in Cienfuegos Bay.(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... One of the worst environmental disasters in recent Cuban history took place nine months ago, but scientists say the effects might linger for years. On Dec. 12, 2001, a fertilizer plant accidentally discharged 417 cubic meters (110,160...

Casinos in Cuba's future?(Artículo Breve)(Entrevista)
September 1, 2002... An expert on the Caribbean gambling industry says Cuba's lack of casinos will eventually hurt the island as it vies with other destinations for tourist dollars. Bruce Smith, president of New York-based WestVille Enterprises, says that for...

In their own words ...(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... "The embargo has not worked for 43 years. However, if the U.S. lifted the embargo, it would be a political triumph for Fidel [and] the result would be to prolong the regime. As long as there are no reforms improving the level of life for the...

Bahamasair plans $99 Florida-Cuba flights via Nassau.(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... U.S. passengers hoping to circumvent the travel ban and fly to Cuba will soon have the option of connecting seamlessly and cheaply via Nassau to Havana from three Florida cities: Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Orlando. The four-times-a-week...

Canadian company exhibits rare treasures from sunken shipwreck.(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... Toronto-based Visa Gold Explorations Inc., which specializes in finding and recovering artifacts from sunken ships, is exhibiting over 8,000 items recovered--along with local joint-venture partner Geomar S.A.--from a Spanish vessel that sunk...

Sally Cowal: from ambassador to anti-embargo activist.(Entrevista)
September 1, 2002... Sally Grooms Cowal spent 30 years with the U.S. Foreign Service, assigned to far-flung hot spots like New Delhi, Bogota, Mexico City and Tel Aviv before winding up her career as U.S. ambassador to Trinidad. But it was her friendship with...

Congress to face a barrage of Cuba-related issues this month. (Newsmakers).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... When Congress returns from its summer recess in early September, it will continue its struggle with the White House over a slew of Cuba issues. A fight with the Bush administration has already broken out over several provisions in the bill...

Tight-lipped Sherritt is one of Cuba's top foreign investors. (Foreign Investment).
September 1, 2002... Canada's Sherritt International Corp., which earns 35% of its revenues in Cuba, has invested in nearly every productive sector of the Cuban economy except sugar: oil drilling, nickel mining, food-processing, agribusiness, tourism and mobile...

Cuba debates land tenure policy. (Foreign Investment).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... The Cuban government is debating a new measure on cooperatives that, if passed, will dramatically reform the issue of land ownership in rural areas. It could also benefit the hundreds of thousands of hectares to be withdrawn from sugar-cane...

Cuba tells EU it'll reduce bureaucracy. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... The Cuban government is promising to reduce bureaucratic red tape, in response to complaints from foreign investors and the European Union. Ernesto Senti, vice-minister for foreign investment, says his government is "waging a battle to cut...

Cubana to use Iberia computer systems. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... Cubana de Aviacion is now enabled to use the computer systems of Spain's flagship airline, Iberia. A contract signed Jun. 22 between the Cuban state airline and Iberia provides for the following systems: RESIBER (inventory control); Check-In...

Sugar planting slashed significantly. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... Cuba is dramatically reducing sugar planting for the 2003-04 crop, as part of a restructuring of its sugar industry that involves closing nearly half of the island's 156 mills and the transfer of plantations to other uses. Reuters reports...

Ontario hospital donates dialysis units. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... South Grand River Hospital in Kitchener, Ont., has donated 43 hemodialysis machines and six renal chairs to replace outdated equipment in Cuba, reports Canadian Press. After hearing heartbreaking stories of Cuban hospitals with broken dialysis...

Cayo Coco to get flights from Portugal. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... A new direct route between Portugal and Cuba has started operating from Jardines del Rey International Airport on Cayo Coco, a small island along Cuba's northern coast. Ricardo Figuereido, a Lisbon tour operator, told Prensa Latina that...

Finnish Fund banks on Cuban economy. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... The Finnish Fund for Industrial Cooperation Ltd. (FinnFund) is the latest financial institution to bet on Cuba's economic recovery. Under an agreement signed in July, Helsinki-based FinnFund will inject $3 million into the British-Cuban...

Cuba hopes to compete in wine market. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... Merlot is unlikely to replace the mojito as Cuba's national drink. Nevertheless, Cuba's fledgling wine industry is looking to improve the quality of its products both for domestic consumption and for export. "Our wine is bitter, but it's...

Cuba unveils wheat substitution program. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... The Castro government will substitute wheat flour imports through an investment program that aims to mill all the necessary cereal in Cuba to cover domestic demand, reports the Havana weekly Opciones. Teresa Tejo, deputy minister of Cuba's...

Russian firm to finish Cienfuegos refinery. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... Crown Resources AG, a unit of Russia's Alfa Group, plans to complete construction of an oil refinery in Cienfuegos that was begun by Soviet engineers but abandoned following the disintegration of the USSR. The project will cost $40...

Aerogaviota receives 3rd ATR-42. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... Cuban charter airline Aerogaviota has added a third ATR 42-500 turboprop aircraft to its fleet. The new plane was presented in July during an international aerospace show in Farnborough, England. Aerogaviota, based at La Habana/Baracoa...

Lexington Institute issues Cuba report. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... "Survival Story: Cuba's Economy in the Post-Soviet Decade" is the title of a new study released by the Lexington Institute. The 20-page report offers a unique look at the "six fixes" Cuba has used to keep its economy afloat since 1991:...

Cuba decides not to trade in turtle shells. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... Cuba has withdrawn a controversial proposal to trade shells of the endangered hawksbill turtle following worldwide pressure from marine turtle experts and environmental groups. Cuba had proposed to the UN Convention on Trade in Endangered...

PDVSA workers protest oil sales to Cuba. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... Top executives of state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. are publicly denouncing PDVSA's plan to resume shipping 53,000 barrels of crude oil a day to Cuba under preferential financial terms. The executives, who have formed a group known as...

Big hotel planned for Cayo Santa Maria. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... Experts from the province of Holguin are working on a project to build a 360-room hotel on Cayo Santa Maria, in the province of Ciego de Avila. According to a government press release, the Dunas-II hotel will consist of eight- and 16-room...

French envoy upbeat on trade. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)(Entrevista)
September 1, 2002... Jean Levy, the French ambassador to Cuba, said the two countries are significant trading partners despite a substantial drop in bilateral commerce this year. Levy said trade between France and Cuba fell 29% during the first five months of...

Floridians plan boat rally to Baracoa. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)
September 1, 2002... The St. Augustine-Baracoa Friendship Association is planning a boat rally to the Cuban fishing port of Baracoa next May. A two-route option is being considered. One would involve sailing through the Bahamas directly to Baracoa, a distance...

BrasCuba launches new cigarette brand. (Business Briefs).(Artículo Breve)(Anuncio de Producto)
September 1, 2002... BrasCuba, a joint venture between the Cuban government and Brazil's Souza Cruz S.A., has begun producing Hollywood Light for the domestic market. Company officials say the new cigarettes "are characterized by their white filter with...

Sugar-producing Ciego de Avila turns to tourism to save its economy.
September 1, 2002... The province of Ciego de Avila was born in 1976, when the government replaced Cuba's original six provinces with 14 new administrative divisions. Ciego de Avila covers 6,910 sq kms (2,668 sq miles), including 589 sq kms (227 sq miles) of...