Page 6 - LatAmOil Week 39 2022
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LatAmOil                                          MEXICO                                            LatAmOil



       Report: Pemex did not notify regulators




       about methane leaks in December 2021






                         MEXICO’S  national oil company (NOC)   the Polytechnic University of Valencia in June
                         Pemex does not appear to have submitted any   2022.
                         reports on the methane leaks detected at the   However, it disputed the team’s conclusions
                         Ku-Maloob-Zaap oilfield cluster last December   about the frequency, size and composition of
                         on the basis of satellite data from the European   the leaks, citing a study performed by its own
                         Space Agency (ESA), according to a report from   contractor Solal-Genermasa.
                         Reuters.                               In response, the research team has rejected
                           The news agency said earlier this week that   Pemex’s contention that the leaks consisted
                         Mexico’s environmental regulatory agency   largely of nitrogen, which has no effect on
                         ASEA had responded to its freedom of informa-  climate. In a statement sent to Reuters, team
                         tion request about the incidents by stating that   members said nitrogen was not visible to the
                         there were “no records” of “a possible incident at   sensors they had been using. “There is no way of
                         the asset Ku-Maloob-Zaap in December 2021.”   mistaking one for the other,” the statement said.
                         The leaks also seem to have gone unremarked   “The startling emissions we reported were 100%
                         elsewhere, as Reuters went on to say that it   methane, plain and simple.”
                         had not been able to determine independently   Methane is often flared off during oil produc-
                         whether Pemex had reported the matter via   tion operations to minimise harmful impact. It
                         another channel.                     is a key driver of climate change, as it is much
                           The NOC is subject to current Mexican   more powerful than at trapping heat than car-
                         legislation that requires the reporting of such   bon dioxide. However, it only lasts in the atmos-
                         leaks, noted nine experts consulted by the   phere for around a decade. ™
                         news agency. Mexican law obligates oil and gas
                         producers to report methane leaks to ASEA
                         within 10 days of their occurrence, explained
                         the experts, all of whom are current or former
                         officials at Mexican regulatory agencies or the
                         Secretariat of Energy (SENER).
                           As of press time, neither Pemex nor ASEA
                         had commented publicly on the matter.
                           Pemex has partially confirmed reports of the
                         methane leaks, which occurred at the Zaap-C
                         platform in December 2021. It conceded last
                         month that methane was released from the plat-
                         form, as stated in an article published in Envi-
                         ronmental Science & Technology Letters by a
                         research team led by Itziar Irakulis-Loitxate at   Satellite images showed a methane leak from the Zaap-C platform (Images: ESA)


       CFEi sues two former executives in




       Texas court over gas supply contracts






                         A  privately owned subsidiary of the Fed-  court on September 21, CFE Internacional
                         eral Electricity Commission (CFE), Mexico’s   (CFEi) accused its former CEO Guillermo Tur-
                         national power provider, has filed a lawsuit in a   rent and its former COO Javier Gutierrez of
                         Texas court against two former executives who   breach of contract and breach of duty. Specifi-
                         were played a role in the signing of three natural   cally, it alleged that Turrent and Gutierrez had
                         gas pipeline and supply contracts in 2016 and   awarded gas deals improperly to WhiteWater
                         2017.                                Midstream, a US-based natural gas trader and
                           In a petition filed in a Harris County district   pipeline operator.



       P6                                       www. NEWSBASE .com                      Week 39   28•September•2022
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