<article><p class="lead">Mexico's 330,000 b/d Salina Cruz flagship refinery reduced its crude throughput volume in September and awaits offloading of a <a href="http://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/1780931">first cargo of light sweet Bakken crude</a> from the US to increase its production.</p><p>The <i>SCF Prime</i> tanker arrived on 31 October at Mexico's Pajaritos port, the nearest to the refinery, with what would be the first of four 350,000 bl cargoes of light crude. It had not offloaded as of yesterday evening, according to vessel tracking data.</p><p>This facility in the southeast of the country processed 136,402 b/d of crude during September, down by 9.4pc from August. Its light crude processing had an even bigger drop as it fell by 12pc on a monthly basis.</p><p>Pemex is confident that the arrival of light crude will boost Salina Cruz's throughput as well as the company's total processing volume towards an 800,000 b/d target for the end of the year. In September, the company processed 604,309 b/d.</p><p>The state-run company has not said how much it expects Salina Cruz to increase its production nor its crude processing rate when the crude arrives this month, because the 1.4mn bl light crude imported volume will serve as a first trial to see how Salina Cruz refinery reacts to the new diet.</p><p>But in its <a href="http://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/1780808">latest earning call</a>, Pemex executives said the company is ready to receive the crude and to increase its production as soon as the first 15 days of November.</p><p>Pemex's light crude production decreased by 17pc to 516,676 b/d in September since August and by 19pc since the same month of last year.</p><p>"Certainly the little light crude that Pemex produces is mostly for Salina Cruz," said Ramses Pech, an energy consultant with Caravia y Asociados says. "The problem is that now Pemex's light crude production is decreasing to a point where not even Salina Cruz has a supply."</p><p>Light crude volume sent to refineries, excluding crude produced by Pemex and sent to export terminals, decreased by 8.4pc in the month, and by 4.5pc year-on-year.</p><p>The drop in the available crude for refineries affected Salina Cruz as its refined products output decreased by 13pc to 130,290 b/d.</p><p>The refinery has traditionally been the biggest fuel producer in the country, but the new trend in production has left the refinery in second place. The 220,000 b/d Salamanca refinery overtook Salina Cruz in August when it produced 159,761 b/d, compared with 150,069 b/d from Salina Cruz. This continued into September, when Salamanca produced 152,871 b/d, 17pc more than Salina Cruz's 130,291 b/d production.</p><p>Pemex is placing its expectations on both of these refineries, its best performing, to achieve a 1mn b/d crude optimal processing rate in the mid-term — an even further target than the 800,000 b/d goal for 2018.</p></article>
