Oil's well that ends well

 
Published: Sunday 15 September 2002

Oil industry heavyweight Pemex had to throw in the towel recently when a group of irate fisherfolk brought operations at its refinery in Salina Cruz, in Mexico's southern state of Oaxaca, to a grinding halt. The protesters were demanding compensation for damage which, they claim, was caused by a diesel fuel leak that occurred when a pipeline was illegally tapped last April in Juchitan, Oaxaca.

The two-day blockade at the plant severely disrupted gasoline and diesel supplies to the southern part of Mexico. It also brought about a steep reduction in the Mexican company's intake of crude oil for petroleum products -- mainly gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. The storage capacity for natural gas was hit as well.

Initially, its officials met to implement emergency plans to protect its facilities and workers. But with work coming to a virtual standstill, Pemex eventually saw the fisherfolk's viewpoint and blinked. Now, not only is it willing to negotiate payment of damages to the community, the oil company is even prepared for "a phased shutdown of the industrial plants at the refinery".

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