Possible Alternative Fuels for Cuba’s Bakeries in Crisis
Moringa waste and solar panels for baking bread
In collaboration with Spain, specialists from Cuba Energy are experimenting with biofuels instead of diesel to power bakery ovens.
HAVANA TIMES – Bakeries in Havana experiment with biomass and solar panels to fuel their ovens. The method has been successfully tested at the bakery in El Vedado neighborhood known as Panadería Dulcería Línea y 12. According to workers there, specialists have certified that the hot dog buns made during the pilot were of good quality.
On October 5, Canal Caribe broadcast a report on the project, which promises to save enormous amounts of diesel and gas for the food industry. “Every day, this oven that we’re going to see now consumes around 80 kilos of diesel, and that’s the minimum. So, multiplying that by 365 days – that’s the net savings we’ll obtain,” stated C. Alfredo Curbelo Alonso, a researcher at Cuba Energía.
The large quantities of fuel required by every bakery in the country add up to a heavy financial burden that also leaves bakeries dependent on the availability of the fuel. In contrast, this project involves the use of a different type of fuel for the ovens: Moringa pellets. The Moringa plant is one of the few things that is abundant in Cuba. Based on this idea, a collaboration was initiated with Spain, through the Agency for International Development Cooperation, involving both companies and the University of Zaragoza.
According to the Spanish Biomass Association, the Center for Research on Energy Resources and Consumption spearheaded the first studies for the project in 2022. Specialists there verified the suitability of Moringa for biofuel, as well as a system and process for converting its woody remains into pellets, and its potential, among other things. All of this led to the opening of the first factory of its kind on the island in October 2024.
In a statement published when the plant opened, the Spanish association stated that the woody remains of Moringa, which is “fast-growing and has multiple applications,” would be transformed, rather than discarded, to serve as a source of heat. The Ecofricalia company provided the specific pelletizing plant for Moringa biomass and the Biocurve company provided the biomass boilers.
“Thanks to the use of biomass, the drying process is carried out at a lower energy cost compared to the electrical system that had previously been in use,” the press release stated. This system, product of an agreement with the Ministry of Food Industry and Cuba Energía, could guarantee a supply of fuel for bakery ovens. “Cuban experts and researchers highlight the validity of this proposal, in view of the energy contingency facing the country. They also value its importance in exceptional situations, such as those caused by meteorological phenomena,” the report states.
The report explains to the population that the use of wood pellets has become widespread, since they offer a high combustion power and are easy to handle. Researcher Curbelo Alonso noted that the process that will be rolled out for the bakeries could later be extended to other, larger, industries, although in those cases the pellets would have to be from scrap wood, which is “a little easier to produce and more difficult to manipulate, but well worth it.”
The goal is to transform Cuba’s energy matrix using a resource that the island possesses in abundance. Last week, in an interview with Bloomberg News, University of Texas expert Jorge Piñón advocated the use of biomass in Cuba as a substitute for the country’s expensive and poor-quality crude oil, although he proposed sugarcane as the base raw material.
The report also mentions the possibility of installing solar panels in as many of the country’s bakeries as possible, so that baking could be done during daylight hours. “This is a comprehensive project that is now being considered in the investment plans we’re preparing for 2026, involving solar panels on the roofs of bakeries that are suitable for this,” added the engineer, who assures that this will guarantee “continuous production for the population, without interruption due to a lack of diesel.”
The shortage of flour and the poor condition of the flour mills have caused another crisis on the island: that of poor-quality rationed bread rolls and their shrinking sizes. Added to this is the lack of electricity, which frequently jeopardizes the production of the product, causing panic among the population who desperately seek it, and leading not only the authorities but also the bakers themselves to ration sales at times, even in private businesses.
First published in Spanish by 14ymedio and translated and posted in English by Havana Times.
This sounds great at first but let’s think this through. The use of biofuels for domestic energy needs is nothing new. First, collecting the raw materials used to create the pellets requires energy inputs. Separating the raw materials to be used from the non-usable wood (too green, too wet, too whatever) also requires human labor that requires energy consumption on various levels. The process of grinding and processing the plant material, adding back solvent through pumps also requires energy. Then these pellets have to be bagged and transported. By the way, how did the bags get there? Bottom line: the energy inputs to get from moringa plant to bakery oven kills the deal. Is Cuba not only growing more desperate but also more stupid? By the way, the whole solar panel fantasy? Also more expensive than you think. There are no free rides folks. Cuba needs capitalism now more than ever.