Historic and transcendental day, special guests clamor at the inauguration

Arturo Sánchez Jiménez, Jared Laureles and Georgina Saldierna

Newspaper La Jornada
Saturday July 2, 2022, p. 4

The head of the capital’s government, Claudia Sheinbaum, pointed out that the Olmeca refinery is an extraordinary work that represents energy sovereignty for the country, because once it comes into operation, it will not be necessary to import gasoline.

Arriving in Tabasco to attend the inauguration, he indicated that what is being done in the current refineries, the six refineries, with the purchase of the Deer Park refinery, and as soon as Dos Bocas is already operating, we will not require the importation of gasoline.

The president of the capital stressed that oil is a benefit for the entire nation, but historically the south has given a lot to the country, and now much of what the south has given us is being returned.

Later, Sheinbaum posted a photo on Twitter with the Secretary of Energy, Rocío Nahle, whom she congratulated on the construction. Also in a tweet he wrote that for years the objective in Mexico was to sell Mexican oil abroad, from the overexploitation of the deposits. Then they began to import gasoline and abandoned the refineries.

They promised to build a refinery and only one fence remained. Today the government of President López Obrador demonstrates the change in energy policy as a strategic axis of development, guarantee of sovereignty and energy transition.

In another he stated: Today is a historic day! Four years after the triumph of democracy, I had the honor of accompanying the President at the inauguration of the first construction stage of the Olmeca refinery.

For his part, the Cuban ambassador, Marcos Rodríguez Costa, also invited to the ceremony, stated that the inauguration of the refinery It is a milestone in the objective of President (Andrés Manuel) López Obrador to achieve self-sufficiency in Mexico in terms of energy.

It is an honor to accompany the Mexican people and their President on a transcendental day of their sovereigntyhe stated in messages posted on social networks.

On the contrary, deputies of the PAN and the PRD considered that the construction is plagued by opacity and corruption, in addition to the fact that it presents a cost three times higher than projected. They assured that the plant will not solve the country’s gasoline supply problem.

The PAN member Jorge Triana maintained that the Energy Secretary, Rocío Nahle, awarded a contract for more than 5 billion pesos to a consortium in which his compadre Arturo Quintanilla Hayek participates. He assured that said company was constituted just five days before being benefited.

Groups such as the Mexican Center for Environmental Law (Cemda) and Greenpeace pointed out that the emission of gases from the refinery is comparable to that of more than 855 thousand compact vehicles a year, which puts at risk the fulfillment of emission reduction goals. raised in the Nationally Determined Contributions by 2030.

Cemda recalled that a year ago Pemex’s Ku-C platform caught fire in Campeche, so it called ecocide to the new plant.

He added that in the first 23 years of operation, the refinery will emit a total of 43.5 million tons of carbon dioxide, and estimated that up to 0.25 million tons of methane will be released.

This is equivalent to the felling of 183 million trees in that period, a figure that could rise to 366 million if the useful life of the refinery is extended by 40 years.

The organization indicated that between 2018 and 2021, Pemex accumulated 172 high-impact spills and leaks. In June of this year alone, two incidents occurred.