Mexico will import “unprecedented” quantities of fuel to guarantee national supply
Mexico will be importing an unprecedented 75,000 barrels of fuel per day to mitigate the shortages drivers have suffered over the past week due to illegal pipeline taps carried out by criminals, authorities said.
These are “extraordinary measures to guarantee the supply” in many cities of the country, said Francisco Fuentes, vice director of Supply and Distribution of state-owned Petroleros Mexicanos (Pemex) in statements to Televisa.
“We will increase our import of oil products by 75,000 barrels, an unprecedented figure. Clandestine tapping into pipelines has grown exponentially over the past few years,” said Mr. Fuentes.
A spokesman from Pemex explained that 75,000 barrels would be imported from the US, adding to the 400,000 they already receive from different parts of the world. The latest imports of fuel could be reduced by today, as national refineries increase their production, according to CNN Expansion.
The theft of fuel by alleged drug cartels in Mexico has been an increasingly worrying issue for the government. The number of taps into gas pipelines increased from 1,620 in 2012 to 4,218 in 2014, according to Mr. Fuentes. Last year, these criminal activities caused losses of over USD 1 billion.
This year authorities have already reported 2,813 illegal taps into their pipeline system.
Shortages at fuel stations were reported in half-dozen states, including Aguascalientes, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Jalisco, Nuevo Leon and Zacatecas. Long lines of cars waiting to refuel and panic buying were reported last week in Guadalajara, Mexico’s second biggest city.
