Friday, July 18, 2025

Theft is the problem today, aging pipelines will be next challenge

The vulnerability of Mexico’s petroleum pipelines to theft is well known but the country’s natural gas lines are also cause for concern.

The National Gas Control Center (Cenagas), the federal agency responsible for the surveillance and maintenance of Mexico’s 12,678-kilometer-long natural gas pipeline network, has detected that 70% of the ducts have been in operation for 35 years or longer and have deteriorated to such an extent that they don’t meet current safety and regulatory requirements.

On average, natural gas pipelines function at an optimal level for 30 years, after which they should undergo extensive maintenance to extend their lifespan or be replaced.

Some sections of the pipeline network, including parts located in the cities of Reynosa, Monterrey, Torreón and Chihuahua, have been identified as requiring urgent attention because they could create “dangerous conditions” for residents and the environment.

Their state of disrepair could also threaten the continued supply of fuel to customers, Cenagas said.

The agency, a division of the Secretariat of Energy (Sener) that was created in 2014, inherited responsibility for the outdated gas pipeline network from Pemex.

Two years ago, it requested almost 200 billion pesos (US $10.4 billion at today’s exchange rate) to carry out maintenance and modernization of the pipeline network including its monitoring and control systems.

But despite the importance of the projects and the inherent risks of out-of-date pipelines, the modernization work, which should have been completed last year, has not even begun, the newspaper El Universal reported.

Just under 666 kilometers of pipelines in the natural gas network — or 5% — are considered to be high risk and 8,166 kilometers — 64% — are classified as medium risk, according to Cenagas.

Source: El Universal (sp) 

Have something to say? Paid Subscribers get all access to make & read comments.
two people walkin gby a for rent sign

Can rent control stop gentrification? Mexico City officials plan to find out

4
Political leaders in the nation's capital have reached into their anti-gentrification toolkit and come up with an approach that goes straight to the heart of the problem.
cell phone with Uber

Mexican authorities slam Uber’s price hike: ‘Unilateral and irresponsible’

1
The ride-hailing app insists that the rise is necessary after recent labor reforms gave its drivers full employee rights, including IMSS membership.
The achoque is a critically endangered salamander that’s the cousin of the famous axolotl.

Lake Pátzcuaro’s fishermen answer call to rescue the achoque, the axolotl’s endangered cousin

2
Fishermen in Pátzcuaro, Michoacán, have teamed up with local scientists to raise achoque hatchlings and re-release them into the lake in an effort to stabilize their declining population.
BETA Version - Powered by Perplexity