Oil Usage to Cease Due to Shift Towards Renewable Energy, Not Depletion

Questions surrounding the world’s oil reserves running out have been raised for decades. However, even though it was expected to exhaust by the end of the last century, new deposits have continued to be discovered and exploited. According to Jorge Ancheyta Juárez, researcher at the Mexican Petroleum Institute (IMP), it’s difficult to predict when this fossil fuel will run out. He noted that while the exact date is unknown, the resource will eventually stop being used due to the shift towards renewable energy.

Ancheyta, a petroleum chemical engineer and professor at the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN), believes that the transition to renewable energy will supersede the exhaustion of oil reserves. The researcher was awarded the 2020 National Science Award in the field of Technology, innovation and design for his contributions to the oil refining industry and his leadership in specialized training for the oil industry.

He is specifically recognized for his innovative research in the area of upgrading heavy crude oil and the development of catalytic prototypes such as the IMP-DSD-30 catalyst. This catalyst enables the production of ultra-low sulfur diesel (UBA), leading to the establishment of the first catalyst plant in the country.

Ancheyta also denied claims that the new refinery in Dos Bocas is a white elephant. Instead, he argued that its existence is crucial for energy self-sufficiency as it’s designed to process Maya, a Mexican heavy crude oil. Without this refinery, the country would not be able to meet its diesel and gasoline demand.

One of Ancheyta’s key contributions has been the development of technologies that transform heavy crude oil into light crude oil. This not only facilitates transportation but also improves its quality to feed refineries that were not designed for this type of product. He is currently working on a project in collaboration with the Federal University of Kazan, Russia, to lighten heavy crude oil inside the deposits to increase the recovery factor.

Another significant project is the development of the IMP-DSD-30 catalyst, which allows the desulfurization of diesel and will enable Pemex to supply UBA class diesel to the entire country in 2025. The challenge was that Mexico had no plant to manufacture this catalyst, leading Ancheyta to promote the creation of a plant in the country that will produce this and other catalysts. The plant is expected to be operational by the end of this year.