Mexico hopes to award at least four of the 10 deepwater oil blocks due to be auctioned next week, plus the farm-out on its Trion Field, Energy Minister Pedro Joaquin Coldwell said on Nov. 29.
Some of the world's biggest oil firms, including ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) and BP Plc (NYSE: BP), are pre-qualified to bid on the initial deepwater tenders on Dec. 5, which Joaquin Coldwell termed "the mother of all auctions" in an interview with local radio.
The auction will seek a partner for Pemex to develop the Trion Field, and also award the 10 other deepwater blocks, including some around Trion just south of Mexico's maritime border with the U.S.
"If we award four blocks plus the farm-out, we'd be very satisfied, hopefully it'll be more," Joaquin Coldwell said.
Mexico in 2013-2014 ended Pemex's E&P monopoly in a bid to encourage more private investment in the oil and gas industry, though the decline in crude prices has undermined interest in the historic energy reform.
If successful, the blocks could generate up to $4 billion worth of investment each, and as much as $11 billion in the case of Trion, Joaquin Coldwell said, citing Pemex estimates.
There is widespread concern in Mexico that the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president could hurt its economy due to his campaign threats to impose punitive tariffs on Mexican-made goods or tear up a joint trade deal if he cannot renegotiate it.
Still, when asked whether Trump's arrival in the White House could negatively affect U.S. interest in Mexico's energy sector, Joaquin Coldwell said he expected cooperation to remain solid.
"In terms of bilateral relations between Mexico and the United States, we expect it to be as good as it's been with President [Barack] Obama," the minister said.
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