A Chinese-made oil rig is on track to arrive off Cuba and begin drilling there before the end of the year, a spokesman for Spanish oil company Repsol YPF said yesterday.

Spokesman Kristian Rix did not confirm or deny rumors of delays for the Scarabeo-9 rig, but he said the project has always been based on a window of time and is still on schedule.

He said uncertainties in scheduling are due to the challenges of maneuvering a massive rig.

"We're not moving a bag of chips around here," Rix said in a telephone call from Madrid.

Repsol holds the rights to an exploration block of more than 1,700 square miles off the Cuban coast, according to the company's 2010 annual report. The Spanish company leased the Scarabeo-9 rig earlier this year from Italy's Saipem SpA.

According to geologic studies conducted by several international institutions, Cuba's reserves in the Gulf of Mexico could hold between 5 billion and 9 billion barrels of oil.

Cuba has designated exploration blocks of its reserves to a number of private energy companies, none of which are based in the United States, although U.S. firms have expressed interest in drilling there.

Some U.S. environmental groups, politicians and academics have expressed concerns over opening up more drilling in the Gulf in light of the BP PLC oil spill last year.

Repsol's 2010 annual report says the Scarabeo-9 meets U.S. specifications and technical requirements (AP/Fuel Fix, Oct. 14). -- PK