Mexico: Forecast for Mexico's Oil Production
2011/03/27
Oil Mexico is one of the top three sources of U.S. oil imports.
According to the Oil and Gas Journal (OGJ), Mexico had 10.4 billion barrels of proven oil reserves as of January 1, 2010. Most reserves consist of heavy crude oil varieties, with a specific gravity of less than 25° API. The largest concentration of reserves occurs offshore in the southern part of the country, especially in the Campeche Basin. There are also sizable reserves in Mexico’s onshore basins in the northern parts of the country. The country produced an average of 3.0 million barrels per day (bbl/d) of total oil liquids during 2009, down from 3.18 million bbl/d in 2008. Of Mexico’s oil production, 87 percent was crude oil and condensate, the rest consisting of natural gas liquids (NGL) and refinery gain.
Sector Organization
Mexico nationalized its oil sector in 1938, creating Pemex as the sole oil operator in the country. Pemex has four operating subsidiaries: Exploration and Production, Gas and Basic Petrochemicals, Petrochemicals, and Refining. Pemex is the largest company in Mexico and one of the largest oil and natural gas companies in the world.
Exploration and Production
Most of Mexico’s oil production occurs in the Gulf of Campeche, located off the south-eastern coast of the country. The two main production centers in the area include Cantarell and Ku-Maloob-Zaap (KMZ), with smaller volumes also coming from the fields off the coast of Tabasco state. In 2009, Cantarell and KMZ represented 57 percent of Mexico’s total crude oil production. Due to the concentration of Mexico’s oil production in the Gulf of Campeche, any tropical storms or hurricanes passing through the area can disrupt oil operations. In 2007, Hurricane Dean forced the evacuation of all offshore platforms and shut-in all production for several days. In 2005, Hurricane Emily also impacted Pemex’s operations in the Gulf.
The Cantarell oil field was once one of the largest oil fields in the world, but production there has declined dramatically in the past several years. In 2009, Cantarell produced 630,000 bbl/d, down 38 percent from the 2008 level and down 70 percent from the peak production level of 2.12 million bbl/d in 2004. As production at the field has declined, so has its relative importance to Mexico’s oil sector: Cantarell contributed 24 percent of Mexico’s total crude oil production in 2008, versus 62 percent in 2004.
The offshore area adjacent to Tabasco state contains the Abkatun-Pol-Chuc and Litoral de Tabasco projects. Each project consists of several smaller fields, with combined crude oil production from the area standing at 518,000 bbl/d in 2009. Production from this area has stabilized in recent years, but it is about one-third lower than levels seen a decade ago.
Chicontepec
Crude Varieties
Pipelines
Pemex operates an extensive pipeline network in Mexico that connects major production centers with domestic refineries and export terminals. This network consists of over 453 pipelines spanning 2,900 miles, with the largest concentration occurring in the southern part of the country. Mexico does not have any international pipeline connections, with most exports leaving the country via tanker from three export terminals in the southern part of the country: Cayo Arcas, Dos Bocas, and Coatzacoalcos.
Forecast for Mexico's Oil Production
Oil Trade
Oil Exports
In 2009, Mexico exported 1.23 million bbl/d of crude oil, down from 1.4 million bbl/d in 2008. The United States receives the vast majority of Mexico’s crude oil exports, which mostly arrive via tanker at the Gulf Coast, In 2009, the U.S. imported 1.1 million bbl/d of crude oil from Mexico, all of which went to the Gulf Coast. The U.S. also imported about 140,000 bbl/d of refined products from Mexico in 2009, mostly residual fuel oil, naphtha, and other unfinished oils.
Oil Imports
Downstream
To reduce its imports of refined products, Pemex plans to build at least one additional refinery in Mexico. In 2009, the company announced that it would build a new, 300,000-bbl/d facility in Tula, Hidalgo state at a reported cost of nearly $10 billion. Pemex planned to begin construction in 2011. The Tula plant would be the first new refinery built in Mexico in thirty years.
- Related Articles
-
IMF Data & Forecasts
2011/08/11 2010 2015 Scale Units GDP at constant prices 8692.83 10886.42 Billions -
NAFTA — the North American Free Trade Agreement
2011/05/31 NAFTA — the North American Free Trade Agreement — is a comprehensive, groundbreaking free trade and investment agreement which took effect on 1 January 1994, involving the governments of Canada, Mexico and the USA. -
Most of Mexico ’s electricity generation comes from conventional thermal sources, chiefly natural gas.
2011/03/27 Electricity Most of Mexico ’s electricity generation comes from conventional thermal sources, chiefly natural gas. -
Natural Gas Mexico ’s natural gas consumption is rising primarily due to greater use of the fuel in power generation.
2011/03/27 According to OGJ, Mexico had 13.2 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of proven natural gas reserves as of January 2010. According to Pemex, the Southern Region of the country contains the largest share of proven reserves. However, the Northern Region will likely be the center of future reserves growth, as it contains almost ten times as much probable and possible natural gas reserves as the Southern Region.
-
- Mexico News
-
- ISRAEL: Netanyahu to pioneer new diplomatic grounds in Latin America
- AFGHANISTAN: UNWTO: International tourism – strongest half-year results since 2010
- NORTH KOREA: Mexico expels North Korean ambassador over nuclear tests
- CANADA: U.S. trade rep says in NAFTA talks he keeps Trump's views in mind
- CHINA: China Invites 5 Countries As Guests For BRICS Summit
- CANADA: Why Mexico, Canada can discount Trump’s remarks on NAFTA?
- Trending Articles
-
- CHINA: Life after Rosneft deal: CEFC ambitions face debt, regulatory hurdles
- SOUTH AFRICA: KPMG's South Africa bosses purged over Gupta scandal
- TANZANIA: Critic of Tanzania's Magufuli moved to Kenya for treatment of gunshot wounds
- CHINA: Former Fed official Fisher: China could be the key to solving the North Korea crisis
- FRANCE: Aluminium-Lithium Alloys Fight Back
- CHINA: BRICS countries considering own cryptocurrency as settlement mechanism