Armed gang takes control of Pemex well

An armed group has had control of a natural gas well in north-east Mexico for two weeks, Mexican media said, the latest sign of criminal gangs robbing fuel from state oil monopoly Pemex.

News wires 10 June 2010 17:47 GMT

The armed men have been blockading the "Gigante Uno" liquefied natural gas well, part of the Burgos basin, in Nueva Ciudad Guerrero near the US border since 23 May3, the daily Reforma reported today.

They are apparently stealing natural gas condensate from the site and the army has been unable to get in, Reuters reported.

Pemex declined to comment on the report, which also said several workers at the site had been abducted.

Mexico's northern border with the US is a battleground for drug cartels fighting over routes to smuggle cocaine. Pemex has long complained about fuel theft by criminal gangs, mainly controlled by drug traffickers.

The state-run energy giant filed a lawsuit this week against several companies for allegedly profiting from processing stolen oil. It said some $300 million in condensate has been stolen from its installations since 2006.

At times thefts at its Burgos natural gas fields have approached 40% of the condensate produced, Pemex said.

Mexico is locked in a brutal war with drug traffickers that has killed some 23,000 people, mainly smugglers and police, since late 2006 and is a concern for foreign investors.

Tapping into pipelines or storage facilities to steal oil, gasoline, diesel and jet fuel generates a fortune for criminal gangs, who are often aided by corrupt Pemex employees.

Reforma said five workers from the Burgos well had been kidnapped by the armed group.

"Families have not been asked for a ransom, but we know they did ask the company (Pemex)," Reforma said, quoting an unidentified source.