Mexico energy watch: CFE courts private sector, looks at US natgas storage

Mexican state power company CFE is looking to extend its private sector partnerships into the natural gas sale arm of its business.

According to a report by Natural Gas Intelligence, the head of gas trading arm CFEnergía, Miguel Reyes, attended the US-Mexico Natural Gas Forum in San Antonio, Texas, for the first time in four years.

The executive said the company was putting "contractual disputes behind us," in reference to the natural gas contract renegotiation that took place in 2020, and added the state firm was looking to "work together in partnerships" with the private sector to utilize the excess natural gas capacity of its pipelines.

Reyes took the stage with representatives from TC Energía, Sempra Infrastructure and New Fortress Energy – US and Canadian firms that are developing projects in partnership with CFE.

During the panel, CFE said it was looking for "points and goals we have in common" with private partners, and said the partners valued the state firm's ability to help secure permitting and resolve social issues concerning their projects.

CFE is developing a marine pipeline and several LNG projects in partnership with the firms.

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Meanwhile, CFE is mulling accessing US-based natural gas storage to protect itself from potential exposure to extreme climate events, according to local news outlet Oil & Gas Magazine.

Aniel Altamirano, the deputy head of the firm's international fuels and power trading arm CFE International, told the outlet the company was aware that a low temperature event like the deadly 2021 Texas freeze could again paralyze US pipeline imports, jeopardizing Mexico's power grid.

During the freeze, CFE was able to limit power outages by securing emergency LNG shipments, Altamirano said. The country's local storage capacity has long been considered insufficient by experts.