The proposed regulations for self-service fueling facilities will mark a significant change for trucking and logistics companies in Mexico. What for years has been an operational practice for supplying company fleets will now become a regulated activity, with new administrative, technical, and compliance obligations that could modify how various companies manage their fuel supply.
In an interview with T21, Alberto Valdivieso, general director of F. RUIZ e Hijos , a company specializing in the marketing and distribution of fuel nationwide, explained that the regulation stems from the modifications to the Hydrocarbons Law of March 2025 and the corresponding regulations, published on October 3 of that year in the Official Gazette of the Federation (DOF) , which establishes a specific definition for the dispatch of self-consumption and sets new obligations for those who store and supply fuels intended exclusively for their own vehicles .
The executive explained that the regulation defines self-consumption as the activity of receiving, storing, and supplying petroleum products solely for vehicles owned or possessed by the permit holder and related to their economic activity, without the possibility of selling the fuel to third parties . He also indicated that these operations must be carried out in facilities that comply with the technical and regulatory requirements established by the authority.
“The Hydrocarbons Sector Law clearly defines the activities of self-consumption dispatch, storage and transportation for own use and end users, so it will be from these definitions that the authority must develop and complete the regulatory framework for petroleum products,” he explained, while detailing that, according to various sources consulted, it is estimated that in Mexico there are just over 20,000 self-consumptions .
Since August 2014, the Hydrocarbons Law has defined the storage and sale of fuels, Valdivieso indicated, although it was not fully defined as an independent activity. With the new regulations, logistics and trucking companies will no longer consider internal supply solely as an administrative operation, but will instead adopt a broader regulatory compliance framework.
“It will go from being an operational activity to a regulated activity,” the executive summarized, adding that the authority is still working on a supplementary agreement to clarify the scope of some provisions and reduce the uncertainty that currently exists among users of the self-consumption scheme.
New obligations
From a business perspective, the main challenge will not only be complying with the new administrative requirements, but also assessing their impact on each company’s operational strategy . Valdivieso emphasized that organizations will need to analyze whether maintaining self-consumption facilities remains advantageous in light of the new regulatory obligations.
Among these obligations, he mentioned compliance with volumetric controls, industrial safety measures, environmental protection, and mechanisms to verify the legal origin of the fuel . The regulation also aims to close loopholes for fuel theft, both physical and fiscal, so oversight will extend to the end user.
According to the Citizen Energy Observatory , fuel theft—the smuggling of fuel through irregularities in import and invoicing—reached 123.5 billion pesos (mdp) in the country during 2025, making it necessary to have control measures in this sector.
Valdivieso believes that companies already operating under high standards of engineering, safety, and compliance will face a smoother transition. In contrast, facilities that do not meet technical or environmental requirements will have greater difficulty adapting to the new regulatory environment.
For fuel distributors, regulation plays a different role. Having experience in regulatory matters since the opening of the energy market, they must now become a support system so that newly regulated companies understand the obligations arising from the regulations and can comply with them without affecting their operations.
“(We) already know a large part of the regulatory framework and I believe that we must provide the best possible guidance and information to these newly regulated self-consumption and own-use entities, but also being aware that not all companies will be ready to assume the sector’s recent regulatory burden,” Valdivieso emphasized.
The executive pointed out that it will be essential for organizations such as the National Energy Commission (CNE) and the Tax Administration Service (SAT) to clearly disseminate the content of the regulation, so that carriers and logistics companies know their responsibilities and the costs associated with compliance.
One of the most pressing concerns for the sector is the mandatory registration that will be required once the authorities publish the final regulations. Valdivieso recommended that companies register promptly, as those that remain outside the registry could face restrictions on purchasing fuel from authorized distributors , directly impacting the continuity of their operations.
“If they are not on the authority’s lists, distributors may not be able to sell to them,” he warned, noting that the intention of the measure is to size the self-consumption market and strengthen supervision of the sector.
Regarding alternatives for trucking, the executive anticipates a market reconfiguration. Some companies will continue operating under the self-consumption model, while others will opt to increase supply through service stations, depending on their economic and regulatory assessments. However, he ruled out a decrease in demand for transportation fuels.
A company with almost a century of history
Founded in 1935, in an unconventional way, F. RUIZ e Hijos started in the business of selling sugar blocks, which required to be heated with fuel, “I imagine petroleum or some heavy derivative at that time,” Valdivieso emphasized.
“As a result of consumption, they bought more and then acquired a small tanker truck. When they had surplus product, they sold it to other sectors that needed it for their own consumption, and then they saw that this also generated business, and from there, they kept buying product and growing, and that’s how the company was born,” he recalled.
F. RUIZ e Hijos has gone through virtually all the regulatory stages of the Mexican energy sector: from the close relationship with Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) as the sole supplier, through the opening of the energy reform of 2013-2014, to the current process of centralization of Pemex.
With 90 years of history, which it celebrated in December 2025, the company has focused part of its strategy on technological solutions for supply control, tank monitoring and regulatory advice .
It is currently preparing a storage project in Mexico City to strengthen its infrastructure and support its clients during the implementation of the new framework to regulate the sector, with the purpose of avoiding operational interruptions and maintaining the competitiveness of trucking and logistics companies.
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