In Cuba, high octane gasoline becomes first basic good sold only in dollars

By Marc Frank

HAVANA, Feb 19 (Reuters) - High octane gas will now only be available for dollars in Cuba, the government announced on Wednesday, the latest in a trend towards dollarization in the communist-run country.

The deputy director of the state oil and gas monopoly, Irenaldo Perez, said U.S. sanctions had made the move necessary. It was "very difficult to gain access to high octane gasoline on the international market," Perez said in comments to official media.

Perez said state vehicles would now use regular rather than premium, high octane gasoline.

In Cuba, food, fuel and other items are mainly imported and then sold at subsidized peso prices to the public.

The Caribbean island has also for years operated hard-currency grocery stores with high-quality goods aimed at tourists and a minority of residents who could afford them, but this is the first time a basic item has become only available in dollars.

Nidialys Acosta, who runs a small business and was waiting for gas in Havana, said the latest move could impact doctors and other professionals who might have a modern car but a peso-denominated salary in Cuba, where there is no functioning official exchange market and the dollar trades on the informal market at a high rate.

"If you have no way to buy the dollar, you have to leave the car at home," she said.

Since 2019, the Cuban government's foreign income has fallen sharply, creating severe shortages of basic goods.

Cuba blames the Cold War-era U.S. trade embargo and the COVID-19 pandemic for crippling tourism and domestic industry, wiping out the cash it needs to import basic goods. But top officials have also recognized that internal bureaucracy and inefficiencies in its state-run model contribute to the crisis.

Last year, the country opened a chain of gas stations offering a range of fuels in dollars for tourists and locals who wanted to avoid long waits to fill up their tanks.

Cubans with access to dollars - often from remittances - can also reserve a rental car or fancy hotel room.