Kinder Morgan is seeking to expand capacity along its SFPP East Line from El Paso, Texas, to Tucson, Ariz., through binding open season commitments, according to a company release on Monday.

The expansion will allow for an additional 3,250 b/d of Mexican-grade diesel and domestic grade gasoline, jet fuel and diesel.

The additional capacity is expected to be available starting on or before April 2026, according to the company release.

This time last year, Kinder Morgan launched a similar binding open season for an additional 10,000 b/d of refined products along the same route. At the time, the expansion was estimated to become available on or before July 1, 2025.

While Kinder Morgan is looking to add scalable capacity to the El Paso to Tucson line, West Coast trading participants have recently told OPIS the Tucson export market to Mexico has been "dead" for much of the year amid uncertainty due to U.S. trade tariffs imposed on Mexican fuel imports.

Exports to Mexico were estimated to decline by about 6% from U.S. tariffs and drop by 9% in the case of retaliatory tariffs, thinktank Brookings Institution reported earlier this year.

Data compiled by the Energy Information Administration shows U.S. distillate fuel exports to Mexico totaled 247,000 b/d during May this year, the most recent month for which the data is available. May diesel export figures haven't been that low since 2020, according to EIA data.

In 2024, Mexico was the top recipient for U.S.-produced crude and petroleum products, according to EIA.

   --Reporting by Bayan Raji, braji@opisnet.com; Editing by Michael Kelly,   mkelly@opisnet.com 
 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 18, 2025 12:22 ET (16:22 GMT)

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