Page 7 - LatAmOil Week 06 2022
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                             The unfinished Dos Bocas refinery will process 340,000 bpd of domestic crude (Image: LopexObrador.org.mx)
                         India has been a major market for Mexican   which is Pemex’s primary export market. It also
                         crude exports. Refinitiv Eikon data cited by   said that the most significant cuts would prob-
                         Reuters show that Indian refiners purchased a   ably affect customers in South Korea and India,
                         total of 132,500 bpd of oil from Pemex last year,   while US and European buyers were likely to see
                         equivalent to about 7.6% of the country’s total   much smaller reductions.
                         production of 1.736mn bpd. Indian Oil Corp.   Reducing exports is not a trifling matter.
                         (IOC), HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd (HMEL) and   Mexico has been exporting at least 1mn bpd of
                         Reliance Industries have been among the biggest   crude oil since the early 1980s, and the 2021 fig-
                         buyers of Isthmus and Maya grade crudes.  ure was no exception, coming in at a bit more
                           All three are likely to see Mexican imports   than 1mn bpd. President Lopez Obrador’s plan
                         drop sharply this year. Reuters’ sources reported   calls for cutting that figure down by more than
                         that Pemex had already reduced shipments to   60% in 2022 and then bringing it all the way
                         HMEL and Reliance, and one source said he   down to zero by the end of the following year.
                         expected to see IOC take delivery of just 22,000   Pemex has already decided what to do with
                         bpd of Mexican oil in 2022, down from 40,000   the additional barrels of crude oil. It intends to
                         bpd last year.                       deliver these volumes to its refineries in order
                           Pemex’s CEO Octavio Romero Oropeza   to maximise fuel output, increase domestic fuel
                         told reporters in late December that his com-  supplies and eliminate dependence on imported
                         pany intended to cut exports to 435,000 bpd   fuels. The feedstock will go to Pemex’s six exist-
                         in 2022 and then halt exports altogether over   ing plants, which have been operating far below
                         the course of 2023, as requested by President   their full design capacity of 1.6mn bpd for many
                         Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. Bloomberg   years, as well as the newly acquired Deer Park
                         commented at the time that this shift was widely   refinery in Texas. It will also eventually go to the
                         anticipated to have a bigger impact on Asia,   Dos Bocas refinery, a 340,000 bpd facility now
                         which typically absorbs about 25% of Mexico’s   under construction in Lopez Obrador’s home
                         total crude exports, than on North America,   state of Tabasco. ™



                                                     VENEZUEL A
       Chevron reportedly in talks with PdVSA






                         CHEVRON has reportedly entered into talks   day (bpd) unless it teams up with foreign pri-
                         with Venezuela’s national oil company (NOC)   vate companies. However, US sanctions on the
                         PdVSA over the US major’s aim to gain more   Venezuelan oil sector are a significant obstacle to
                         control over its upstream assets in the South   investments in production.
                         American state. Reports of the discussions have   Although Chevron has been active in the
                         come to light as Venezuela seeks to increase oil   South American state for decades, it has had to
                         production, even though it remains subject to   ramp down most of its operations in response
                         US sanctions.                        to the imposition of trade restrictions. To revive
                           Caracas has little hope of pushing crude   its business in Venezuela, the company would
                         output up to the target level of 2mn barrels per   require a special waiver from the US Treasury.



       Week 06   10•February•2022               www. NEWSBASE .com                                              P7
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