Pemex Board approves rules for mixed oil contracts

The Board of Directors of Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) approved the Guidelines for Mixed Development Schemes, to enter into contracts primarily for private development in the oil industry within the fields assigned to the state-owned company, which recorded a production of 1.607 million barrels of crude oil and condensates per day last March.

According to Pemex, these guidelines, published in the Official Gazette of the Federation, are a framework that seeks to optimize oil production through strategic partnerships and collaboration with the private sector.

It's worth remembering that Pemex CEO Víctor Rodríguez Padilla told El Economista at the end of March that the now-reformed state-owned company, Petróleos Mexicanos, is preparing 17 joint ventures with private partners to add at least 55,000 barrels per day in production starting in July, in a context that is not new: oil will once again bail the country out of trouble.

After the enactment of a new Public Enterprise Law and the legal support for the constitutional change that returns advantages to the oil company, which is no longer a monopoly, with all its preponderance, Pemex seeks to once again become a lever for development, now with the "fundamental" support of private companies that will allow it to reach a production platform of 1.8 million barrels per day, according to its president.

These schemes were established in Agreement CA-025/2025 during the 1035th session of the Council. They will allow for partnerships with private companies to share costs, risks, and investments in hydrocarbon exploration and extraction activities.

Among the most relevant provisions, mixed contracts, which prioritize public bidding, will be structured to foster operational synergy, maximizing production and optimizing resources.

Although the guidelines also contemplate alternative mechanisms such as direct award, applicable in specific cases involving operational synergies or strategic projects that cannot be completed through other methods. "Only up to two mixed contracts may be awarded directly per consortium or legal entity in these cases," the agreement establishes.

Additionally, each project must meet technical, operational and economic requirements.

The guidelines require that the contracts include an evaluation model based on discounted cash flows, analyzing key indicators such as Net Present Value (NPV) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) to ensure financial viability. Pemex must maintain at least a 40% stake in each contract, underscoring its strategic role in energy projects.

Production falls 11.3% annually in the first quarter

Last week, Pemex announced that in March it was nearly 200,000 barrels per day below its liquid hydrocarbon production targets, while its average crude oil production fell 11.3% year-over-year for the quarter, due to the decline in mature fields and delays in well completions. The state-owned company's production was 1.615 million barrels per day in the quarter, including partners.

In a telephone conversation with analysts, executives at the state-owned company reiterated that the company is working to increase production to 1.8 million barrels per day by the end of the year, a goal set in President Claudia Sheinbaum's Plan Mexico.

Hence, both the latest indicator, for March, and the one for the quarter, imply the need to accelerate production, for which Rodríguez Padilla assured that mixed contracts will be used.

According to the director, plans will be in place for operations in 17 new fields, where joint contracts will be signed with private companies from whom capital will be sought. Pemex will contribute the Mexican state's resources, and its share will consist of what it has already invested in exploration, as well as a carrying amount so that it does not invest public resources.