Pemex Cancels 4 Joint Contracts; Shell and BP Among 51 Companies That Withdrew

Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) canceled four joint development contracts (its program to attract private capital into exploration and production) on July 14, after failing to reach agreements with Shell, BP, Eni México, Woodside, and 47 other companies, according to files reviewed by El CEO. The projects carried combined estimated reserves of 2,100 million barrels of crude oil and projected guarantees of at least $175 million for the first year of operations.

The four projects span different basins across the Gulf of Mexico: Nobilis-Maximino in deepwater off Tamaulipas (canceled on April 20, with Shell and BP among the 11 companies invited), Macuil-Paki in shallow waters off Tabasco (48 companies), Kayab-Pit-Utsil off Campeche (128 square kilometers and estimated reserves of 1,710 million barrels), and Tlatitok-Sejkán in Veracruz, which went through three rounds of clarifications without a contract award. The joint contract program is Pemex's primary vehicle for attracting private capital and technical capacity at a time when crude production is falling short of official targets. The cancellation comes as the energy chapter of the USMCA is under review, where openness to private investment in Mexico's energy sector is one of the central issues in the negotiation, Reforma reported.

Pemex invoked force majeure and stated that timelines were insufficient to resolve the concerns raised by interested companies. According to the Social Witnesses who attested to the processes, the files reflect a lack of clarity in the contracting terms, ambiguous technical concepts, and incomplete information. In the case of Nobilis-Maximino, Social Witness Alejandro Elías Jaime Atri described the cancellation document as "very terse." In addition to Shell and BP, the invitation lists included Halliburton, Woodside, Eni, Lukoil, Sinopec, Wintershall Dea, and Schlumberger. In total, 51 companies were listed across the four processes, and none secured a contract award.

The cancellation leaves open the question of whether the joint contract scheme can attract large-scale private investment. The next indicator will be whether Pemex revises the tender terms before launching new rounds, and whether the companies that withdrew opt for other entry mechanisms into the Mexican upstream.

This article was drafted with artificial intelligence assistance based on verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.