Cuba Offshore Oil Deal with Russia

(Havana, Cuba) American oil companies can't get close to anything like this.

A Russian consortium is looking at leasing up to 15 blocks covering a total of 15,440 square miles (40,000 square kilometers) for oil exploration in Cuba's part of the Gulf of Mexico, a Cuban oil official said on Tuesday.

Companies from China and Angola are also negotiating deals for oil blocks in Cuban waters, which abut those of Mexico and the United States, said Manuel Marrero Faz of Cuba's Ministry of Basic Industry.

He said the Russians are studying the region off the communist island's northwest coast for oil potential before deciding which of the blocks they would like to lease.

Notably, the areas considered offshore Gulf of Mexico waters for Cuba are also offshore waters of the United States -- just a bit further out.