By Anthony Harrup


MEXICO CITY--The Mexican government on Thursday ordered the expropriation of a hydrogen plant operated by French company Air Liquide at one of the refineries of state oil firm Petróleos Mexicanos on grounds that it is of public utility.

Air Liquide's Mexican unit couldn't immediately be reached for comment.

In a decree published in the official gazette, the government said Pemex will compensate Air Liquide for the plant, which produces the hydrogen used at the Tula refinery in central Mexico. Air Liquide invested 50 million euros in 2017 to acquire the plant from Pemex, with a contract to supply the state company with hydrogen.

The government ordered Pemex to take temporary control of the plant in December, saying the decision would improve Pemex's refining margins and contribute to national energy sovereignty. It later declared the hydrogen plant of public utility in a step toward expropriation.

The government of nationalist President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has sought to bolster Pemex's dominance in the oil sector as it aims to make the country self-sufficient in fuel production. The plan included buying Shell's 50% stake of a joint-venture refinery at Deer Park in Texas, the construction of a new refinery in Mexico, and upgrading Pemex's six existing refineries in Mexico.

In a separate case, the assets of MarineMax's subsidiary Cabo Marina were seized by Mexican port authorities on April 11.


Write to Anthony Harrup at anthony.harrup@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

04-18-24 1801ET