O&M Services for Every Pipeline

Q: What role does Enagás expects to play in Mexico’s energy market?
A: Enagás has almost 50 years of experience as a midstream player offering its knowledge and playing the expected role in Mexico. The company assists in completing the needed infrastructure and taking advantage of the transport and storage of natural gas in the country. Natural gas is a reliable source of energy, more sustainable than other conventional sources and is truly efficient. At the moment, Mexico is still in the development process to achieve an adequate production platform, so it has to import over 60 percent of its natural gas consumption. Nevertheless, a national production capacity would be in place to reach a healthy commercial balance. Energy endeavors are needed to generate profitable results from private investment to generate local production. Natural gas deposits have no borders. Possible dependence on imports from the US is as real as its dependence on Mexico for the income generated by those imports.

Q: What project best highlights Enagás’ development capabilities?
A: Enagás is part of the consortium that developed the Morelos pipeline project. The 171km pipeline transports natural gas from Tlaxcala to Morelos and represents a door to the Pacific region as it is interconnected to other pipelines that supply energy to Toluca and Aguascalientes. Gas transport trucks also load up at compression points along the pipeline to provide gas to Guerrero. The project was completed three years ago and is already operating. In these kinds of projects, Enagás’ main asset is to inform the communities about the possibilities and the real prospects for growth. The company’s strategy is to do things right from the beginning. Researching and defining the path where the pipeline is going to pass through is very important as well. When the engineering is done properly, everything goes right. After all, every day, people sit on internal combustion engines when driving their cars and this is safe as the engineering of those cars is well-executed.

Q: What is the company’s strategy to increase its client portfolio in Mexico?
A: CFE remains an important client as it is the main player in supplying electricity. Nevertheless, the current infrastructure creates a platform for new customers in the distribution segment. The development of virtual pipelines is important as it involves different sectors. The company is also identifying new off-takers and we want to approach them as well. Our main clients are the big consumers and distribution companies that require big volumes of energy supply. Additionally, Mexico’s pipeline system is under a maturation process. Natural gas infrastructure is not only focused on pipelines. Enagás has substantial experience working with O&M services in Spain where our objective was to achieve a more efficient service. The integral management of O&M, the introduction of cogeneration technology in some compression stations and even the use of cold temperatures at re-gasification plants for cooling distribution networks are some examples of the services that the company can provide in this area. In Mexico, our idea is to take advantage of the current infrastructure by optimizing costs and management for O&M processes. Pipeline integrity is very important to ensure the infrastructure can last many years. Preventive and predictive maintenance avoids corrective maintenance, which is expensive.

Q: What main goals does the company want to achieve by the end of 2019?
A: We want to maintain our position in Mexico as a reference in developing projects in the natural gas sector. This will be achieved by maximizing the benefits of involved communities, optimizing and increasing energy efficiency in pipelines and developing the O&M market as an added value to our services. Regarding the contribution to the decarbonization process, Enagás is already developing projects in Spain to boost the development of cleaner gases such as biomethane and hydrogen that can be transported through the pipeline infrastructure. In Mexico, the conditions to introduce this technology will be in place in the future and we will be prepared to be a key partner.