Mexico's Growing Reliance on US Natural Gas Sparks Widespread Opposition
Mexico's ambitious drive to expand imports of United States natural gas through major new pipeline infrastructure is encountering mounting resistance from coastal communities and environmental organisations. This strategic push, which aims to secure Mexico's position as a key energy hub, now threatens to undermine the nation's climate pledges while raising serious concerns about local livelihoods and ecological damage.
Fishing Communities Fear Pipeline Impact on Livelihoods
In the Gulf of Mexico, veteran fisherman Mauricio Contreras represents thousands whose traditional way of life faces unprecedented threats from newly constructed energy infrastructure. Having fished these waters for over four decades, Contreras now worries constantly about the operational Southeast Gateway pipeline that runs beneath his fishing grounds. "When they started laying it, it affected us because the boats were dropping explosives and you could hear it all the way here, right on the shore," he recalls. His primary concern now focuses on potential leaks: "It's a constant danger that will always be there, and it's a risk for the entire fishing industry."
More than 40,000 people across Veracruz state depend on marine resources for their livelihoods, with fishing representing almost the only employment in many coastal communities. These populations, predominantly comprising Nahua and Nuntajiiyi' Indigenous peoples, allege they were never properly consulted about the pipeline projects as required by Mexican constitutional law.
Environmental Warnings and Legal Challenges Mount
Environmental organisations have issued stark warnings about the ecological consequences of Mexico's pipeline expansion. Greenpeace has highlighted how dredging operations to bury pipelines could damage deepwater reef systems that host unique marine species. Pablo Ramírez, Greenpeace Mexico's energy and climate change program coordinator, emphasises that methane leaks from pipelines could severely affect these delicate ecosystems, which sustain important species including nesting green and olive ridley sea turtles.
Legal challenges have emerged across multiple regions, with residents from fifteen coastal communities filing lawsuits against pipeline projects. Although initial cases have been dismissed, appeals continue as communities fight for proper consultation and environmental protection. Activist and teacher Maribel Cervantes, who joined the legal action, states plainly: "We do not agree with this gas pipeline megaproject because we were never informed about it. We were never consulted and therefore we do not know the consequences it will have."
Strategic Energy Shift Raises Sovereignty Concerns
Mexico's current natural gas strategy represents a significant shift dating back to 2013 energy reforms that opened the sector to private and foreign investment. Originally intended to replace more polluting fuels like fuel oil and coal, the strategy has evolved into a comprehensive plan to position Mexico as a major energy transit hub. Energy analyst Wilmar Suárez explains that Mexico offers the United States not only strategic geographic positioning for re-export but also favourable political conditions for reaching markets that American companies cannot easily access directly.
However, this growing dependence raises serious sovereignty questions. With more than sixty percent of Mexico's electricity already generated from gas-fired power plants, and approximately seventy percent of that gas imported from the United States, analysts warn of increasing American influence over Mexican energy policy. "It is very easy for the US to impose certain conditions on Mexico because it has a dominant position over gas supplies," Suárez observes.
Climate Commitments in Jeopardy
The pipeline expansion directly threatens Mexico's climate commitments, according to environmental experts. Completing all planned projects would make it extremely difficult for Mexico to achieve its goal of reducing net carbon dioxide emissions by thirty-one to thirty-seven percent by 2035. Similarly, the strong focus on gas infrastructure raises serious doubts about Mexico's ability to more than double its renewable electricity generation to forty-five percent by 2030, as promised by President Claudia Sheinbaum.
President Sheinbaum has inherited most existing gas projects and faces pressure to honour commitments where substantial funds have already been invested. However, some optimism exists following the Ministry of Energy's approval of twenty private renewable energy projects in December, suggesting potential for balancing fossil fuel expansion with cleaner alternatives.
Expansion Plans and Future Projects
The Southeast Gateway pipeline, constructed by Canadian company TC Energy in partnership with Mexico's state-owned CFE power company, currently supplies gas to the massive Dos Bocas refinery in Tabasco state. This represents just the beginning of ambitious expansion plans that could eventually see the pipeline carrying more than 1.3 billion cubic feet of gas daily.
Future developments include connecting Southeast Gateway to a planned liquefaction plant in Oaxaca that would convert gas to liquid for shipment to Asian markets. These liquefaction plants, which burn significant amounts of gas to power their conversion processes, have drawn particular opposition from environmental groups. Claudia Campero of Climate Connections highlights how such facilities generate substantial polluting emissions while threatening marine ecosystems through increased shipping traffic.
Mexico's first liquefied natural gas export terminal began operations in 2024, with plans for seven additional facilities that would position Mexico alongside the United States as a major LNG exporter. However, many projects face delays due to ongoing legal challenges and community opposition, creating uncertainty about Mexico's energy future.
Back in San Juan Volador, far from Mexico City's policy-making corridors, Maribel Cervantes voices the fundamental demand of affected communities: "As Indigenous peoples, we demand that our right to autonomy and self-determination be respected. We don't want them imposing their megaprojects on us." This sentiment captures the growing tension between national energy ambitions and local rights that defines Mexico's contentious energy transition.
