(Reuters) — Mexican authorities this week discovered a clandestine mini-refinery in the eastern state of Veracruz, along with half a million barrels of crude oil they suspect were stolen from the country's pipelines.

The government has sought to clamp down on theft of crude oil and refined products as well as illegal imports, known as huachicol, a practice that generates substantial losses for state energy company Pemex and the government.

Authorities have previously linked organized crime and Pemex employees to the illegal trade.

Reuters was unable to contact the owners of the clandestine refinery.

Security Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch said on Wednesday on X that during intelligence actions and overflights, "a clandestine operation was identified."

It produced artisan or alternative diesel, light naphtha or solvents, and treated oils or light fuel oil, he said, all without the proper permits in operations that posed a risk to local ecosystems.

Authorities discovered 500,000 liters of crude oil as well as production infrastructure that fed the country's illicit fuel market.

A Pemex source said that although the discovery was not significant in terms of the volume, it highlighted the impunity with which criminals operate freely in the country, as well as the extensive network of complicity between various sectors.

Separately, authorities also discovered 1.2 million liters of hydrocarbons, fuel trucks and containers in the northern state of Nuevo Leon.

In late May, authorities also recovered more than 3 million liters of hydrocarbon products in the southeast of the country.