In the last four federal administrations, the Presidents in turn have allocated million-dollar sums to rescue Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex), but debts continue to rise and production is plummeting. Against this backdrop, Claudia Sheinbaum yesterday presented the economic project for the oil company for the six-year term with the promise of improving finances and increasing production by taking advantage of the construction of the Dos Bocas Refinery, built during the last administration of Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO). ). However, the challenge is enormous.
In yesterday’s morning conference, the President of Mexico and the director of Pemex, Víctor Rodríguez Padilla, presented the strategic lines to rescue the parastatal company.
As part of the Republican Austerity Plan, Rodríguez announced that they will work on the integration of Pemex subsidiaries into a single company to save 50 billion pesos by eliminating redundant expenses and compacting costs, as well as improving productivity and efficiency. .
“We are going to have very important savings with the merger and we are going to have a lighter company,” he declared.
Likewise, financial strengthening will be sought through a new fiscal regime called “Petroleum Right of Wellbeing”, which will allow Pemex to obtain resources to capitalize, pay debts and invest in projects. And work will continue on reducing debt and complying with payment commitments to suppliers under strict review and work schemes with the Ministry of Finance.
According to opposition deputies, additional support of 120 billion pesos is expected in next year’s budget for Petróleos Mexicanos.
On the topic of debts, between 2012 and 2024 they practically doubled. Today 2.03 billion pesos are owed.
On the other hand, oil production registers one of the lowest levels and stands at 1.8 million barrels per day. Despite the investment in refineries in the last administration and the start-up of Dos Bocas, production is projected at similar levels for 2025.
Another gap in Pemex is the theft in its pipelines. It was promised to reduce the “milking” or “huachicoleo”, but the last administration ended with the shooting of the “pickets” at the parastatal network.
Pemex’s complex financial situation has hit Mexico’s oil revenues, which for decades were essential for the country and represented close to 40% of the federal government’s expenditure budget. The drop in production meant that oil contributions to federal income are now at 15 percent.
In the last six years, green and red fuels increased on average five pesos per liter. THE INFORMER/ Archive
They promise that fuel will not rise above inflation
When presenting the National Strategy for the Hydrocarbons and Natural Gas Sector, the Secretary of Energy, Luz Elena González Escobar, assured that oil production will be a priority for national consumption and not for export, which is why she promised that the price will not increase. of energy in real terms in the next six years.
In Mañanera del Pueblo, the Secretary of Energy detailed the project to maintain prices. He indicated that they will increase national production of petrochemicals to supply inputs to the national industry and will consolidate oil refining to achieve national self-sufficiency in gasoline and diesel.
The promise that fuel prices would not increase was also made in the last six-year term by Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO), focusing his proposal on gasoline. However, six years into his Government, this was not fulfilled and it became 30% more expensive on average, increasing 5.52 pesos for green gasoline and 5.39 pesos for red gasoline.
According to the Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE), the average price of regular gasoline or Magna was 19.29 pesos per liter on December 1, 2018 when the former president took office. Red or Premium gasoline had a cost of 20.86. By October 1, the date on which AMLO left his administration, the average price recorded was 24.81 pesos for the green and 26.25 for the red.
For this new administration with President Claudia Sheinbaum, the secretary of energy insisted on renewing this promise and highlighted that they will do so by strengthening mixed projects “without losing national sovereignty in the production of hydrocarbons.”
The official released figures prior to the AMLO administration, indicating that between 2012 and 2018, there was a disproportionate increase in fuel as a result of the 2013 privatization reform of former President Peña Nieto, in which the Mexican oil sector suffered ” a terrible abandonment since public investment in exploration and production decreased 55%, crude oil production fell 28% and natural gas production fell 22 percent.”
Agencies
THE INFORMER
This is how they plan to maintain prices
- They will increase the storage capacity of gasoline, diesel and gas to strengthen national energy security.
- They will take care of the hydrocarbons to have a reserve of at least 10 years.
- They will develop a regulatory framework to promote biofuels and clean fuels.
- They will support Pemex to make better use of its resources and efficiency, with a cost reduction plan and operation analysis.
CT
