Operational and fnancial constraints will hobble Mexico’s plan to start turning of the taps on 1mn b/d of crude exports this year — even if the political will to end exports completely by 2023 persists. Mexico has this year tasked state-owned Pemex with reducing its crude exports by as much as 57pc and moving toward processing all its crude in its own refneries from next year. The goal is part of Pemex’s 10-point plan directed at meeting President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s campaign promise of making Mexico self-sufcient in refned products. But constraints, including Pemex’s chronically underutilised refning capacity and tight fnances, as well as the risk of alienating crude buyers on the US Gulf coast, are likely to prove signifcant barriers.
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