Mexico begins rationing gasoline to station owners

[phantom power]

TIJUANA – Mexico's national oil monopoly began to ration the supply of gasoline in the Baja California region yesterday, much as it has limited diesel deliveries for several weeks.

Joaquín Aviña, president of the Association of Gas Station Owners of Tijuana, which represents 157 stations, said Pemex told the stations it would supply them according to their sales from January to March, without taking into account current demand.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/mexico/tijuana/20080708-9999-1m8tjfuel.html

[Clovis Sangrail]

1. are there stations other than Pemex? /nt

[izquierdista]

3. No

Pemex is an acronym for Petroleos Mexicanos, and is the government owned petroleum monopoly. It was Lazaro Cardenas who nationalized the oil business in the 1930s, and he was successful in doing so partly because Roosevelt didn't allow any American interference in those type of foreign affairs at the time.

Pemex does all the drilling, extraction, refining and sales of liquid petroleum products. However, propane is not a monopoly and there are several different retailers of it. You can read more about Pemex (in English) here: http://www.pemex.com/index.cfm?action=content§ionID=11

[Juneboarder]

2. Would We Be Considered ILLEGAL If...

we, as Americans, drove down to Mexico to fill up on their government subsidized gasoline and diesel? Ha! It's funny how the tables can turn so quickly on us. I guess that's what we get for thinking we're so high and mighty above all...