President Claudia Sheinbaum announced today that Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) has resolved the problem of excess water and salt in the crude oil at the Dos Bocas refinery, located in Tabasco. During her morning press conference on Thursday, Sheinbaum reported that the Olmeca refinery produces 100,000 barrels of fuel daily and that the complication of the crude oil with the presence of salt has been solved.
In the words of the president: "Dos Bocas, I was told the day before yesterday, by the way, is already producing 100,000 barrels. The problem of crude oil, crude oil with salt, I don't know how it's said, crude oil with salt problems, has been resolved, and so this will allow us to be functioning at full capacity." Sheinbaum addressed the issue of Dos Bocas' production when questioned about the possibility of Mexico diversifying its markets to reduce dependence on U.S. refineries.
The president expressed her confidence in the investment made in the National Refining System by the previous administration, with the aim of ensuring energy self-sufficiency in the country. Sheinbaum highlighted the work done to strengthen the six Mexican refineries and announced the upcoming launch of the coker at Tula.
Last February, it was reported that U.S. refineries were rejecting Pemex's crude oil due to high levels of water present in it. Despite this, the director of Pemex, Víctor Rodríguez, denied that U.S. refineries were rejecting Mexican crude, though he acknowledged that there were complaints about the excess water and salt in its content. Rodríguez assured that exports had not been affected and that they were close to meeting the required specifications.
According to estimates, a standard shipment of half a million barrels of crude oil contains around 30,000 barrels of water, representing a loss of approximately 2 million dollars.
