Well, Hello Castro

MIAMI, Florida -- Recent, sizable discoveries of oil in the North Cuba Basin--deep-water fields that have drawn the interest of companies from China, India, Norway, Spain, Canada, Venezuela, and Brazil--may finally force the U.S. to shelve its economic embargo of Cuba.

Since the discovery of quality oil in Cuban waters in 2004, the country divided the area into 59 exploration blocks. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates they contain up to 9.3 billion barrels of oil and 21.8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

Exploration blocks have already been leased by Canadian and Spanish companies, while Venezuela has put $100 million into pipeline upgrades across Cuba.

from an Associated Press article appearing July 30, 2006