CNH Approves PEMEX’s US$332 Million Production Plan for Camatl

PEMEX’s production plan of US$332 million for the Camatl field has been approved by CNH. The company expects to achieve peak daily extraction of 14.4Mb of crude oil and 6.9MMcf of gas at the field located off the coasts of the states of Veracruz and Tabasco.

Out of the total amount, PEMEX's exploration and production subsidiary, PEP, will invest US$275 million in drilling infrastructure, according to the plan approved by the regulator. While the period of highest extraction is estimated for 2024, the goal is to continue production until 2040, reaching approximately 24.1MMb of oil and 11,500MMcf of gas. This plan follows the approval of a modification to PEP's exploratory plan for assignment AE-0148-2M-Uchukil introduced in March 2022 to allow PEMEX's unit to drill the exploratory wells Mitl-1EXP and Temo-1EXP in June and May.

Camatl is part of the Uchukil block, situated in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico, where the NOC has focused its attention with the support of the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

CNH recently granted PEMEX the flexibility to amend its exploration strategy for the Uchukil assignment, AE-0151-M-Uchukil, covering an area of 1,107.6km2. According to Rodrigo Hernández Ordóñez, Director General, CNH Exploration Opinions, PEMEX's primary objective is to tap into hydrocarbon resources in areas with greater potential within the Tertiary and Mesozoic plays. The state-owned company plans to conduct five exploratory studies and drill the Sukuum-1EXP and Yolpachi-1EXP exploratory wells.

Additionally, CNH approved a modification to ENI’s CNH-R01-L02-A1/2015 contract in Mexico, which includes the Amoca, Miztón and Tecoalli fields off the coast of Tabasco, becoming the second-largest contract in the country after PEMEX's Ek-Balam.

The modification does not affect the approved development plan but involves an increase in the 2024 budget from US$840 million to US$1 billion for drilling 10 wells instead of the originally planned nine this year, as well as construction of facilities and other operations.