After a months-long battle against fuel theft, Pemex officials say that the federal government’s anti-fuel theft strategy is paying off in Guanajuato, one of the states most plagued by the crime, where a 93% drop in fuel theft has been seen since December 2018.

On a visit to the city of León for the annual Mexican Petroleum Congress, Pemex CEO Octavio Romero Oropeza said that fuel theft has long been one of the company’s principal problems and that Pemex’s future performance depends heavily on its ability to reduce theft.

“Pemex’s new business plan depends on our ability to rescue the company, financially as well as operationally, always with a basis in ethical principles and free from corruption.”

Pointing to a graph, Romero said that Pemex lost a total of 100 billion pesos (US $5.2 billion) to fuel theft in the four-year period from 2014 to 2018, which he pointed out was enough to settle 78.4% of the company’s debt for 2019.

On a more positive note, he said that the success of the government’s anti-fuel theft strategy is projected to save Pemex 32.6 billion pesos (US $1.7 billion) this year.

The CEO also highlighted Pemex’s goal of zero debt and that in April and May, Pemex saw positive results in its finances for the first time in years.

He added that the company is in the process of ridding itself of corruption and outdated work practices and hoped to provide new contracts to both Mexican and foreign companies that are willing to work for mutual benefit in accordance with Pemex’s new guiding ethics and values.

Romero said that Pemex is especially eager to work with companies that propose innovative ideas using new technologies and that he expects Pemex’s transformation over the next two years of his administration to reposition it as a model company.

Source: El Financiero (sp), Noticieros en Línea (sp)