Energy Sovereignty / Iran-US Ceasefire

Energy Sovereignty. Minister of Energy Luz Elena González stated that the country currently consumes 9Bcf/d of natural gas. The country imports 75% of that total, 80% from Texas and 20% from California, mostly shale gas extracted through hydraulic fracturing. She warned that this dependence creates vulnerability in both pricing and supply.

Sheinbaum framed the issue as a national security concern, pointing to energy crises in Japan, South Korea, and China as cautionary examples of what heavy reliance on foreign fuel can produce. "What are we proposing? Three actions: greater energy efficiency, more renewable sources and, for now, we are going to exploit conventional gas, because it gives us sovereignty," she said.

To assess whether unconventional gas extraction could eventually be viable under updated environmental standards, the president announced the formation of a scientific committee involving IPN and other research bodies. "We decided to approach IPN and various research institutes and form a scientific committee, specialists who will tell us if there are new technologies that do not have the environmental impacts that the old ones had and that are feasible to use … This scientific committee we will present next Wednesday and they will have two months to say whether it is feasible or not," she said.

Impact of the Iran-US Ceasefire on Oil. President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed that the price of magna-grade fuel remains at MX$24/L (US$1.37/L), attributing the stability to a reduction in the IEPS excise tax and a drop in international oil prices. "Magna gasoline is at MX$24 and we reduced the IEPS tax to keep it at MX$24. We have to keep doing it because the estimate was that the barrel of oil was going to be around 60 or 50. Now that the barrel has dropped, we are in better conditions for gas station owners to lower diesel prices," she said.

The president also welcomed the absence of armed conflict between the United States and Iran, noting its effect on global oil markets. "I think the whole world recognizes these two weeks of agreement reached yesterday between Iran and the United States; it is something good for the country too because oil prices have come down and we all hope that the whole world right now is seeking peace in Iran, in the Middle East, and in the entire world," Sheinbaum said.

Financial Regulation. Sheinbaum addressed the role of the Financial Intelligence Unit following a Supreme Court ruling that confirmed its authority to freeze bank accounts linked to suspected money laundering. 

"The function of the UIF is to prevent money laundering from corruption, organized crime or white-collar crime. Its job is to guarantee the national financial system and prevent laundering. It has always had this power, what happened is that the Court had been defining a series of limitations… Now, if the UIF finds money laundering it can freeze an account; if the private party considers it unjust, they can file an injunction, but there is no longer an immediate suspension," she said.

Mine Rescue in Sinaloa. Sheinbaum reported on the rescue operation at the Santa Fe mine in El Rosario, Sinaloa, where workers have been trapped for 13 days. One miner was found alive and another was recovered dead. A third worker remains inside the mine. Sheinbaum acknowledged the work of theMinistry of Defense, the Navy and the National Civil Protection Coordination, and expressed hope that the surviving miner would be brought out within hours.