Mexico’s NOC Pemex will offer 40 fields in farm-out auctions

Mexico’s onshore Round 3.2 in the works

MEXICO CITY, October 20, 2017 – Mexico’s oil and gas regulators have begun planning Round 3.2 for conventional oil and gas in onshore acreage ahead of the July 2018 presidential elections, officials said on Thursday.

Speaking at an event in Houston, Deputy Secretary of Hydrocarbons Aldo Flores-Quiroga said that the auction could happen as soon as summer 2018, following deepwater Round 2.4 in January and shallow-water Round 3.1 in March.

In the following two bid rounds, the National Hydrocarbons Commission (CNH) will offer a total of 64 blocks estimated to contain 65% of the country’s oil and gas resources.

The CNH has held eight E&P auctions since Mexico’s upstream sector was first opened to private investment following the passage of the 2014 energy reform. As of the most recent auctions, twin tenders held in July, 67 new companies have entered the sector and 72 blocks have been awarded.

“All of this is indicative of the interest and potential that Mexico is already displaying for prospective investors. And it’s just the beginning,” Flores-Quiroga said.

CNH president commissioner Juan Carlos Zepeda said that the bid terms for Round 3.2 would be published no later than early 2018.

Zepeda also announced that the commission was preparing a tender for unconventional areas.

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