Eni’s FPSO Begins Production

Italian IOC Eni, the first private operator to produce oil offshore in Mexico, has flipped on the switch of its FPSO MIAMTE at its AMT field. The vessel first arrived on Mexican shores during the first week of 2022. MIAMTE has a crude processing capacity of 90Mb/d, a gas processing capacity of 75MMcf/d and a reported total storage capacity of between 700Mb and 900Mb. This will add to the 15Mb/d currently being produced at AMT’s Mizton field through the WHP-1 wellhead platform. 

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Service Stations Refuse to Be Verified by PROFECO

Five service stations in the states of Guanajuato, Coahuila, Puebla and the State of Mexico refused to be verified by PROFECO. Ricardo Sheffield Padilla, Director, PROFECO, announced that this verification was part of the consumer protection agency’s ‘Liter per Liter’ program, which attempts to monitor pricing policies and fraud at service stations through an app that allows users to submit anonymous complaints. PROFECO announced that as many as 209 complaints had been submitted over one week in February. This information became part of the agency’s weekly briefing at the president’s daily morning press conferences, which track gasoline prices by brand and state.

Monterra Energy Sues Federal Government

KKR subsidiary Monterra Energy announced its plans to sue the Mexican government after CRE regulators and National Guard soldiers closed down its fuel storage terminal at the port of Tuxpan in September 2021. At the time, Monterra Energy issued a public statement making clear that there was no legal reason for this closure, since the terminal had been completely compliant with all standing SENER regulations. Now, KKR has decided to take the next legal step, demanding that the Mexican state pay back a total of US$667 million in damages and legal fees incurred in the process. No representative from the Mexican government has issued a statement in response to this development, although the suit is yet to be formally filed in court. This leaves the door open for a negotiation process pending a settlement offer, if appropriate.

Protexa Achieves New Installation Method for the First Time in Mexico

Grupo Protexa successfully applied an offshore transportation and installation methodology used in Mexico for the first time. The contractor achieved this during the installation of the ESAH-A platform for PEMEX. The ESAH-A superstructure was transported offshore through an innovative methodology that allowed the weight of the platform to be reduced during offshore movement, greatly simplifying the complexity and reducing costs involved in the operation. The weight of the platform was first reduced from 1,830 tons to 1,514 tons. This facilitated its transportation to the coast of Campeche, where it had to be hoisted onto a submersible called “Fénix.” However, prior to this, the crane that transported the structure on land was submerged 20m, reducing the weight of the platform further to 1,280 tons, facilitating its transportation onto Fénix. A structural base composed of various metals, sands and other materials was placed under the crane before it was submerged to prevent it from sinking into the sea floor. This is the first time in Mexico that an offshore transportation and installation process is achieved in this manner.

PEMEX Crude Export Reduction Begins to Show

With the aim of eventually stopping crude oil exports entirely, PEMEX exported 20 percent less barrels in January 2022 compared to December 2021. The Mexican government is trying to reduce oil exports this year as part of its plan to reach energy sovereignty and the NOC now follows suit, amid a budding increase in production.