Raul, Lula Visit Port Facilities in Mariel. HAVANA, Cuba, June 1, 2011.- Cuban President Raul Castro accompanied former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Wednesday morning for a visit to the Mariel Port installations on the outskirts of Havana, where a modern maritime base that will expand Cuba’s commerce is being built. A video that explains the state of the investment, executed -taking a credit given by Brazil as a starting point and with the help of the International Economic Association- between the Brazilian Odebrecht group and a Cuban construction enterprise, was screened at the beginning of the work session. Later, the building work’s main executives of the two parties spoke about the main actions carried out so far, as well as their importance for this Special Development Area, which will contribute, among other things, to the creation of new sources of employment. The first stage of the project is presently in execution, which includes the construction of a 700-meter pier that will allow for the beginning of operations at the port, where ships with a deep draft (some 15 meters) can enter. It was also known that this container terminal –built under the premise of protecting the environment-, is created due to the fact that, at present, the insufficient depth of the Havana port makes the entrance of vessels of enormous size and with a deep draft difficult. At the end of the meeting, Lula da Silva referred to the significance of this project for Cuba’s economic future and expressed his satisfaction with the good results obtained so far. For his part, the Cuban President highlighted that work is being carried out without He acknowledged the professionalism of Brazilian specialists and urged Cubans, particularly the organizations and enterprises involved in this investment, to learn from the new experiences passed on, due the organizational capacity demonstrated. (Cubaminrex-ACN)
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