Mexico Streamlining Upstream Auctions, Pursuing Natural Gas Storage
As Mexico proceeds with upstream and midstream natural gas reform, demand for gas continues growing and domestic supply can’t keep up. The market opening is a work in progress.
As Mexico proceeds with upstream and midstream natural gas reform, demand for gas continues growing and domestic supply can’t keep up. The market opening is a work in progress.
TransCanada Corp.’s El Encino-Topolobampo Pipeline project in northwestern Mexico is nearly complete with the exception of a “small portion” that was delayed by negotiations with indigenous people.
During the fourth quarter, pipeline exports to Mexico and Canada were up about 22% each from the year-ago quarter, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Mexico, in particular, is increasingly a destination for U.S. gas as shale supplies grow and pipeline capacity increases.
Twenty-four companies representing a wide range of industries and national origin gained access Monday to Mexico’s natural gas pipelines that had been under the control of state-run oil company Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) for almost eight decades.
Increased natural gas transport volumes helped to lift Kinder Morgan Inc. (KMI) results during the first quarter as the company looks ahead to opportunities on the gas side from liquefied natural gas (LNG), exports to Mexico, as well as new Permian Basin takeaway capacity.
Mexico’s CENAGAS last Friday concluded a further stage of its open season for pipeline capacity in the Integrated Natural Gas Transportation and Storage System (SISTRANGAS).
Jumping Jack Flash...On March 28, Spanish natural gas marketer Gas Natural Fenosa (GNF) said it will invest 1.2 billion pesos (US$60 million) in Mexico, during 2017. GNF will target the states of Sonora and Sinaloa in the northwest and the state of Mexico in the center, building out its natural gas distribution networks. A company spokesperson said GNF expects to add 200,000 customers this year, to complement the 1.7 million it already has signed up in the country. (source: El Economista)
On March 27, four days after Cenagas announced the results of its first open season for one-year contracts on Mexico’s National Integrated Natural Gas Transportation System (Sistrangas), it called for a second round of bidding to make adjustments for three oversubscribed routes.
Impulsora Pipeline LLC on Wednesday asked FERC for more time to complete the border crossing facilities for its pipeline from Webb County, TX, in Eagle Ford Shale country to the Texas-Mexico border.
Trans-Pecos Pipeline LLC on Wednesday asked FERC for permission to place into service the natural gas pipeline project’s Presidio Crossing. The Trans-Pecos system is slated to come online March 31, according to a company spokeswoman.