MEXICO CITY — The Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), Carso Energy, a subsidiary of Grupo Carso, and Sempra Infraestructura, a subsidiary of Sempra, through their affiliates signed a Memorandum of Understanding to advance a potential Strategic Alliance needed to the joint development of infrastructure for the transportation of natural gas between the states of Sonora and Baja California.
The objective is to increase the electricity generation capacity of the CFE in these states, as well as to strengthen the natural gas industry in the northwestern region of the Republic, supporting the country’s energy security and the objectives of the Government of Mexico.
The proposed gas pipeline would have an approximate length of 450 kilometers and would be interconnected to the already existing “Samalayuca – Sásabe” and “Sásabe – Guaymas” transportation systems, owned by affiliates of Carso Energy and Sempra Infraestructura, respectively, in order to enable the delivery of natural gas to different CFE generation plants that will be located between Sásabe, Sonora and Algodones, Baja California, as well as the optimization of the CFE’s capacity reserve.
Additionally, this Strategic Alliance would allow the CFE to optimize the natural gas transportation system that it has contracted in the United States of America and in Mexico, with the objective of offering CFE generation plants, industries, and consumers in the region, a safer, more efficient, competitive and reliable supply of natural gas.
The signing of the agreement included the participation of the Director General of CFE, Manuel Bartlett Díaz, as witness of honor Carlos Slim Helú, the President of Sempra Infraestructura for Mexico, Tania Ortiz Mena, the Director General of CFE International and CFEnergía, Miguel Reyes Hernández, and the General Director of Carso Energy, Gerardo Kuri Kaufmann.
REACTION TO
On social networks, the Governor of Baja California, Marina Avila, affirmed that more electricity is coming to the state.
“The CFE signed an agreement with SEMPRA and Grupo CARSO to build a gas pipeline that will connect Baja California with Sonora for the supply of natural gas.
“With this, the CFE will generate more energy and Baja California will meet the electricity demand of industry and commerce, and will increase the supply of natural gas,” said the president.
According to Avila Olmeda, the gas pipeline will boost the state’s economic growth.
“That is why my government will facilitate all stages of this economic transformation project.
“In Baja California we celebrate the national energy policy!”, he concluded in his brief message.
However, the CFE clarified that the agreement signed for the development of the proposed gas pipeline “is preliminary and non-binding.”
The CFE explained that the project remains subject to a series of commitments to be defined as feasibility studies, obtaining permits, signing engineering and construction contracts, obtaining financing, approval of the respective boards of directors, making a decision end of investment, among others.
