Policy changes in Mexico complicate the way forward for companies seeking to export LNG from the country: bringing the gas in might be easier than getting it out again.
The final investment decision (FID) on the Energía Costa Azul (ECA) LNG project in Mexico, issued last year, opened up a new option for companies seeking to export US natural gas.
In the difficult market conditions, half the capacity is being offtaken by a partner in the plant, the French marketer Total. But in late December, the Mexican energy ministry issued new regulations covering the permitting process for the import and export of fuels.
“All changes to legislation are made due to a new vision of the new federal Mexican administration called the ‘energy sovereign policy’, which is intended to strengthen Mexican national energy entities in the energy sector,” Claudio Rodriguez Galan, a partner in Thompson & Knight.
Claudio Rodríguez serves as the Firm’s Mexico City Office Leader and focuses his practice on energy and infrastructure matters. With experience in several Latin American markets and more than 16 years in close connection with the energy market in Mexico, he represents international energy companies doing business in Mexico, including with regard to wind, downstream, water, solar, cogeneration, combined-cycle, pipeline, LNG, nuclear, geothermal, and transmission projects. Claudio is considered by peers and clients as a pragmatic and business-oriented attorney who quickly understands the effects of complex regulation on his clients’ businesses, including those derived from the Mexican Energy Reform and new federal administration criteria.
Source: naturalgasworld.com
