• Submitted by: manso
• Business and Economy
• 04 / 06 / 2011

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Cuba, partners plan to drill 5 wells in Gulf of Mexico; official says prospects 'promising' ap. On Tuesday April 5, 2011, 2:31 pm EDT. HAVANA (AP) -- Cuba says it will begin drilling five oil wells in the Gulf of Mexico this summer in hopes of locating enough crude to justify the costly exploration.

Manuel Marrero is an official with the Ministry of Basic Industry. He says the prospects of finding valuable reserves are "promising."

Cuba's domestic production is exclusively heavy oil with a high sulfur content. Its offshore Gulf waters could contain large quantities of lighter, sweet crude, although a test well in 2004 turned up modest discoveries.

Marrero says studies since then have pointed to "oil traps" in the marine floor, persuading partner companies to take on the expensive task of exploration in deep water. He said Tuesday the drilling will run through 2013.

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/