A unit of US energy firm Sempra is joining forces with Mexico’s Federal Electricity Commission to develop the planned Vista Pacífico LNG export project in Topolobampo.
In that regard, Sempra Infrastructure said in a statement on Monday it has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with CFE for the development of proposed projects, including Vista Pacífico LNG, a natural gas liquefaction project in Topolobampo.
The memorandum includes a natural gas regasification project in La Paz, Baja California Sur, and the resumption of operations of the Guaymas-El Oro pipeline in Sonora, it said.
Boosting supply to power plants
According to Sempra, the development of these projects would allow CFE to optimize excess natural gas and pipeline capacity from Texas to Topolobampo in order to increase its natural gas supply to its power plants in Baja California Sur.
It would also “advance President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s commitment to supply the state with low-cost electricity and lower-emission fuels, and to promote economic growth and development of the region, with a view toward strengthening CFE’s position in global LNG markets,” the firm said.
In addition, the memorandum also addresses the return to service of the Guaymas–El Oro pipeline in Sonora through a proposed re-routing based on “mutual understanding between the Yaqui community and CFE through continued respectful dialogue.”
Through this new route, CFE would be able to supply natural gas to industrial, commercial and residential markets in the Pacific Coast of Mexico, Baja California Sur, as well as the Vista Pacífico LNG facility, Sempra said.
Mid-scale facility
Last year, Sempra said it planned to focus on its new liquefaction development in Mexico named Vista Pacifico LNG.
The mid-scale facility would have a capacity of 4 mtpa and would connect to two existing pipelines, Sempra said.
Sempra is already building the 3.25 mtpa Costa Azul LNG export project in Mexico after it took a final investment decision on the development in November 2020.
The firm also plans to build the fourth 6.75 mtpa train at its Cameron LNG export plant in Louisiana. It also aims to develop the Port Arthur liquefaction project in Texas.
