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Caio Zapata - Énestas
Director General

STORY INLINE POST

Mon, 02/25/2019 - 16:15

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Q: How is Énestas clearly contributing to the development of a healthy natural gas market in Mexico?
A: There are approximately 35 natural gas service stations in the country, which speaks to the lack of infrastructure in this niche compared to other countries. The US, for example, has more than 1,000 service stations countrywide. We can build the required infrastructure considering the locations and routes that our clients may use to supply their natural gas requirements. One of the advantages we offer is Liquified Natural Gas (LNG), which increases travel distance on a full tank by 2.4 times compared to compressed natural gas (CNG). LNG is a reliable fuel option for buses, trucks and other types of transportation related to exports or cross-borders logistics services. In terms of power generation, while I think CFE’s power generation scheme has a broad scope, there are still remote places that the national company cannot reach, such as industrial parks or mines. Énestas offers a solution for these remote locations by providing the required LNG for energy generation and even the generation itself, all at low costs.
Q: How does Énestas promote the use of natural gas?
A: Énestas recently participated in the LATAM Mobility Summit with a presentation about the benefits of using natural gas as a transportation fuel. The company highlighted the advantages of using natural gas to power a vehicle compared to other options in the market like electric cars. An electric car can be a good option but it is limited because even if it pollutes less, it has low capacity to travel long distances. There is a long way to go before electric cars become a viable means of transport. That is why Énestas focuses on informing the public about the advantages and disadvantages of the available options in the market. Very few people know that the battery life of an electric car is around seven years and the renewal price is close to the original value of the car. This is not the case with cars that use natural gas. The customer just needs to be aware that when volumes are high and long distances are required, LNG is the better choice and when distances are shorter and the volumes are lower it is better to use CNG.
Énestas works with natural gas solutions for the transportation, mining and agrobusiness industries, as well as for remote energy generation and vented gas solutions. There is still a misconception about the contribution that natural gas can make to different industries, which is why most people think natural gas can only be used in vehicles. However, it can be used in greenhouses, boilers in the mining industry, fuel for vehicles and ships, and even as a source of energy in remote places with no access to conventional energy. Énestas works tirelessly to disseminate the knowledge and usage of natural gas in Mexico.
Énestas is present in all the markets that benefit from the use of natural gas; therefore, our focus is not on expanding our presence but on the escalation in the type of projects we participate in. We are continuously searching for larger projects like installing conversion kits in cargo ships so they can use natural gas as fuel.
Q: How have your shared-risk testing schemes allowed the company to take advantage of business opportunities?
A: There is uncertainty about the functionality and effectiveness of using natural gas in the Mexican market because it is a relatively new alternative energy source and customers are already using other fuels with which they are more familiar. Our free-testing scheme for projects aims to eliminate this barrier of uncertainty by allowing the client to test our solutions. Once the client is convinced and the necessary infrastructure is in place, this transformation goes smoothly.
Q: What would you like to achieve by the end of 2019?
A: The company has a strong presence in the private sector so we would like to expand our participation in the public sphere. We would like to approach the new administration to seek collaborations and see how we can be part of the natural gas-related tenders and projects that take place in the public sector.

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