The Biden administration will challenge Mexico’s state control of its energy industry.
The Biden administration will seek consultation with the Mexican government on energy policies that the United States believes have caused damage to U.S. companies, and Mexico could be penalized if attempts to resolve the dispute fail. He said he had sex.
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has been working to strengthen control of Mexico’s two major state-owned energy companies, the Federal Power Commission (CFE) and the oil and gas company Pemex, in order to make Mexico more self-sufficient.
However, American energy companies say these measures are making it increasingly difficult to do business in Mexico.
Biden administration officials have also criticized the Mexican government for these practices. say it They limit competition, undermine US companies and the energy they produce, and prevent them from fighting climate change.
Officials from the US Trade Representative told reporters Tuesday that Mexico’s actions appear to be in breach of the US-Mexico-Canada agreement. The free trade agreement, which came into force two years ago, prohibits countries from adopting policies that discriminate against others and requires them to reduce the use of state-owned enterprises.
Officials said the United States has repeatedly opposed Mexican officials and Mexico’s energy policy over the past 18 months.
“We have repeatedly expressed serious concern about the consistency of Mexico’s energy policy changes with Mexico’s commitment under the USMCA,” US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in a statement. “We have tried to work constructively with the Mexican government to address these concerns, but unfortunately US companies continue to face injustice in Mexico.”
Last week, Lopez Obrador proposed to President Biden about energy price issues during his visit to the White House. He told Mr Biden that Congress wanted to approve the proposal to lower gas prices, and that Americans had crossed the border to buy gas in Mexico. He didn’t elaborate on why Mexico’s gas prices are cheap: the government is subsidizing them.
Under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the parties typically have 30 days from the request for consultation to resolve the issue. If no agreement has been reached, the United States may request that a committee of trade and legal experts be established to investigate whether Mexico is fulfilling its obligations under a trade agreement.
If the Commission determines that Mexico’s actions are inconsistent with its promises in the trade agreement and Mexico is still unable to respond, the United States will be granted permission to impose tariffs equivalent to the damage done to Mexican products. There is a possibility. American industry.
On Tuesday’s phone call, senior government officials said the goal was not to impose more tariffs, but to reach a resolution, but if no other agreement could be reached, taxation would be possible in the future. rice field.
