The federal government has completed the purchase of 671 tanker trucks intended to bolster fuel distribution capacity.

Given the urgency to address fuel shortages, the usual bidding process was bypassed in the US $92-million purchase, said Raquel Buenrostro Sánchez, senior officer at the Secretariat of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP).

The purchase, made through tanker truck manufacturers’ associations in Mexico and the United States, will see the first 50 trucks arrive in on February 1. The delivery of the new trucks will continue progressively until March 29.

The trucks will come in four different sizes, with capacity from 30,000 to 60,000 liters. They will be operated by the army but officials from Pemex participated in their selection, defining technical requirements and evaluating offers.

President López Obrador announced the purchase of the vehicles last week, saying they were intended to “take some pressure off” the pipelines used in the distribution of fuel.

Many pipelines were shut down earlier this month in the government’s strategy to combat pipeline taps and fuel theft. Tanker trucks were put into service to deliver fuel but they have been unable to keep up with demand, which resulted in weeks-long fuel shortages in several states.

Source: El Financiero (sp)