Mexico cut fuel theft by 90pc in 2019: Pemex

Mexico's fuel theft crackdown that led to shortages a year ago slashed the amount of gasoline, diesel and LPG stolen to 1.8mn bl in 2019 from over 20.4mn bl in 2018, state-owned oil company Pemex said.

The company cut Ps57.9bn ($3bn) in losses from theft of refined products last year — Ps56bn less in gasoline and diesel theft and Ps1.9bn less in LPG theft, Pemex chief executive Octavio Romero said today.

Mexico shut theft-prone pipelines, moved more transportation to tank trucks and militarized several state oil installations in an aggressive effort early in 2019 that also led to widespread fuel shortages that lasted for several weeks.

The operations included fixing 13,600 illegal taps on pipelines, the recovery of 8.3mn l of fuel and the seizure or recovery of 3,800 tank trucks and 66 boats. Pemex bought 612 tank trucks out of a planned 671, and hired an additional 1,681 drivers to move 1.75bn l (30,000 b/d) in 2019.

The efforts reduced the 81,400 b/d that were stolen in November 2018, a month before the administration of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador took office.

Pemexstill loses about 5,000 b/d of refined products, worth Ps15bn annually, Romero said.

The government will continue its anti-fuel theft tactics, but will reduce the number of soldiers deployed to this effort by 36pc, to 5,300 soldiers from 8,300 last year.

Soldiers from the Mexican navy, army and national guard will be stationed on average every 30km along pipelines, instead of every 20km (19mi), but the government has stopped using three particularly theft-prone pipelines.

Romero did not specify which three had been shut, but said the government in 2020 hopes to again begin using the 220km Tula-Toluca, the 30km San Martin-Puebla, the 255km Matamoros-Cadereyta and the 31km Minatitlan-Mexico pipelines. It hopes to increase the volume of fuels moved through pipelines to 950,000 b/d this year from 817,000 b/d in 2019, as well as add concrete reinforcement to 175km of pipelines.

The military continues to control access to Pemex's six refineries, 39 of 77 storage and distribution terminals, 12 pumping stations and at 58 other strategic installations in 12 states, Pemex said. Soldiers use five airplanes, 10 helicopters and 21 drones in the effort.

By Sergio Meana