Florida in cross hairs of US hunt for oil

Less than 50 miles from Key West, below the waters of the North Cuban Basin, are potentially billions of barrels of oil and trillions of cubic feet of natural gas.

It's an opportunity Cuba can't pass up. So late last year, Fidel Castro's government started contracting out 59 lots in Cuban waters for exploratory drilling.

That, in turn, has tapped into a gusher of controversy in the United States – especially since in nearby American waters, the federal government maintains a moratorium on any oil drilling.

China, Canada, Spain, and India are among the countries that have snapped up Cuba's lots, while the US oil industry has stood by unhappily, abiding by America's decades-old trade embargo with the communist nation. This comes on top of the industry's frustration with the US offshore drilling moratorium – though legislation passed by the House last week is a controversial first step toward lifting the ban.

Environmental groups, meanwhile, are concerned that even if the US moratorium stays intact, drilling in Cuban waters will have a noticeable effect on Florida's 663 miles of beaches.

Also pressing against any oil-industry deals with Cuba is the influential Cuban-American voting lobby in Florida, which is steadfastly opposed to the US conducting business with their former homeland while Mr. Castro is in charge.

These factors present a delicate situation for President Bush, who is mindful not only of his brother's presence in the Florida governor's mansion, but also of increasing pressure to ease America's energy problems at a time of rising gasoline prices.

"He doesn't want to do anything to affect his brother's state, or anything that could be a death knell for his political career," says Jonathan Benjamin-Alvarado, associate professor of political science at the University of Nebraska at Omaha and an expert on Cuban energy issues. "Presiding over any changes during his brother's watch is not what he wants to do."

Since 1977, an informal boundary agreement between the US and Cuba has bisected the Straits of Florida, which are 90 miles wide at the narrowest point. The Cuban side contains at least 4.6 billion barrels of oil and 9.8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, estimates the US Geological Survey. No detailed study has been done on the US side, according to the federal Minerals Management Service, which would have that responsibility.

Unless Cuba agrees not to drill, Congress may move forward with a proposal not to renew the boundary agreement. Until now at least, the agreement has been renewed biennially.

Congress is already considering a flurry of other measures from both sides of the debate. Sen. Bill Nelson (D) of Florida has introduced a bill seeking visa restrictions against executives of foreign oil companies that do business with Cuba. And twin bills introduced into the House and Senate respectively by Rep. Jeff Flake (R) of Arizona and Sen. Larry Craig (R) of Idaho seek to exempt US oil companies from the trade embargo.

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