Despite the current downturn in oil and gas prices that is dogging the U.S. energy sector right now, financing was recently completed on two major natural gas pipeline projects that will provide natural gas to the Mexican state-owned electric utility, Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE). The utility is the country's dominant electric company, and the country's second most powerful state-owned company, after Pemex.

The two greenfield projects are being funded concurrently through two separate financings that have closed. One project involves an approximately $508 million pipeline running 195 miles to San Elizario, near El Paso. The other project involves an approximately $647 million pipeline that will run 148 miles to Presidio on the Rio Grande River, which is about 180 miles southeast of San Elizario.

The borrower/developer is a consortium consisting of Mexico's Carso Energy SA de CV, Energy Transfer Partners LP of Texas, and MasTec Inc. of Florida, and gas will be sold via offtake agreements with CFE.