Mexican state oil company Pemex's gas and basic petrochemicals subsidiary (PGPB) expects in April to release the bidding requirements for the supply of ethane and natural gasoline, according to Pemex information obtained by BNamericas.
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The supply contract or contracts will entail provision of the raw materials to private firms for a minimum of 15 years in order to feed a new 1Mt/y ethylene plant that will be privately constructed and operated.
The ethylene plant will require a US$1bn investment and will also spur investment of some US$700mn in plants using ethylene to make byproducts such as polypropylene, polyethylene and ethylene oxide, Mexico's deputy hydrocarbons minister Mario Gabriel Budebo said previously.
Pemex is currently in the process of receiving observations from potential investors regarding the supply contract.
PGPB plans to receive bids from investors at the end of July in order to sign the contract or contracts during the third quarter.
Leftist politicians have railed against the proposal to draw private investment into the project since it was announced by President Felipe Calderón in February.
Calderón presented the project as a means to reduce Mexico's level of petrochemical imports without tapping into Pemex's already strained finances.
The country registered an US$11bn petrochemicals trade deficit in 2007.
During his tenure, former president Vicente Fox launched the Fénix project, which aimed to develop a US$1.8bn ethylene plant and US$800mn aromatics facility.
With Pemex set to control the plants with a 51% stake but unable to guarantee the supply of raw materials, the private sector lost interest in the project and plans were derailed.
