Petronas secures another block in Mexico

PETALING JAYA: Petroliam Nasional Bhd’s (Petronas) subsidiary PC Carigali Mexico Operations, SA de CV, has been awarded shallow water Block 6 in the Gulf of Mexico’s Salina Basin.

The group said in a statement that Block 6 covers about 559 sq km in water depths of between 30 and 80 metres and will be operated by PC Carigali Mexico in a 50:50 partnership with Ecopetrol, the national oil company of Colombia.

“I am pleased with our new partnership with Ecopetrol and I am confident this will bring together our capabilities and expertise for a successful collaboration in Mexico waters,” said Petronas executive vice-president and CEO (upstream) Datuk Anuar Taib.

Petronas was awarded deep water Block 4 and Block 5 in 2016 in a joint venture partnership following Mexico’s first ever auction of its deep water exploration areas.

“Mexico is largely underexplored and holds substantial material opportunities. We are very pleased to add Block 6 to our growing exploration portfolio in Mexico, and be one of the early movers in this basin. This is aligned with our strategy to explore for material oil in largely underexplored prospective regions,” noted Petronas vice-president of exploration (upstream) Emeliana Rice-Oxley.

With a total of 5,491 sq km in gross acreage in the Salina Basin to date, Petronas said it will continue to chart its growth strategy in Mexico, to be supported by a new office in Mexico City that will begin operations in the third quarter of 2017.