Mexico City, Mexico — The Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) has announced a new partnership with two companies that will allow it to enter into the natural gas industry.
Manuel Bartlett Diaz, head of the Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) announced the new partnership with TC Energía and NewFortress Energy Corporation. During his speech, Diaz said that the CFE will no longer be just a consumer of transportation services, but will be a partner and owner of gas pipelines.
He said the objective is the strengthening of the energy security of Mexico, and the commercial relationship between the Government of Mexico and the North American and Canadian private energy sector.
Diaz explained that TC Energía Strategic Alliance, a Mexican business unit of TC Energy Energy Corporation (formerly TransCanada), is located in Calgary, Alberta and will guarantee the energy security of the southeast.
He said that with the alliance, the extension of the marine pipeline to Coatzacoalcos will be developed, which will allow having new infrastructure to take natural gas to the liquefaction plant in Salina Cruz.
It will resolve the problem of the Tuxpan-Tula gas pipeline with a new route that will comply with the presidential instruction not to affect the rights of the communities of Hidalgo and Puebla. It will eliminate the possibility of resolving disputes through arbitration for the Tula-Villa de Reyes gas pipeline.
Also, the additional extension to Dos Bocas will allow for new infrastructure to transport natural gas to the southeast of the country and the Yucatan Peninsula and will unify all transportation contracts in the center of the country from Tamazunchale to Tuxpan, in a single contract with a leveled tariff.
NewFortress Energy Corporation, a subsidiary of Fortress Investment Group LLC, is an investment capital company based in New York which will strengthen CFE’s business relationship in international markets.
This alliance, Diaz said, will allow the CFE to be a partner in a natural gas liquefaction project, acquire an additional generation plant in BCS and guarantee the supply of natural gas in the same region.
In addition, it gives the CFE the opportunity to have ships of said fuel at cost price to meet the needs of the CFE terminals in Altamira, Tamaulipas and Manzanillo, Colima.
It will resolve the natural gas supply interruption dispute in Baja California Sur and instead, extend the contract (both in volume and term) to guarantee reliable supply to the Baja California Sur peninsula for the next 10 years.
Finally, it will allow the CFE to have, in the short term (12 months), the infrastructure to market liquefied natural gas in international markets (mainly Europe) and obtain additional income.
