Mexico Senators May Break Pemex Monopoly on Refining, Pipelines

Dec. 18 (Bloomberg) — Mexican President Felipe Calderon’s National Action Party is working on a proposal to end the state’s 69-year monopoly on oil refining and pipelines, freeing cash for Petroleos Mexicanos to invest in production.

The plan would allow private companies to operate pipelines and refineries in Mexico, said Sen. Ruben Camarillo, secretary of the Senate Energy Committee. Outsourcing part of those operations would allow Pemex to boost investment in exploration and production as crude reserves and output dwindle, he said.


“There’s a great opportunity for private companies to participate,” Camarillo said in a Dec. 14 interview in Mexico City. “Pipelines, transportation, distribution and storage are areas that are falling behind.”

Allowing private companies to play a bigger role in the state-controlled oil industry is a long-held goal of Calderon’s party. Energy Minister Georgina Kessel said last week that Mexico’s crude output may drop by a third by 2016 unless lawmakers ease rules on Petroleos Mexicanos.

Bloomberg