Fieldwood Energy LLC expects to be producing 30,000 b/d of light oil at two offshore Mexico fields by the end of the year, Andrés Brügmann, Mexico country manager, told NGI’s Mexico GPI. 

Brugman

“The Pokoch and Ichalkil platforms should start producing in September…in the future we expect the project to reach 100,000 b/d and be one of the top producing assets in Mexico.”

Brügmann added that considerable natural gas output is also forecast at the fields. 

“We expect to produce 55 MMcf/d of natural gas by the end of 2021 and to reach a maximum rate of 130 MMcf/d by 2023,” he said. “This production should contribute positively to the supply of gas in the southeast of Mexico.” 

Brügmann has served as the Fieldwood Energy Country Manager for Mexico since 2015, when the company won rights to develop offshore oil and gas in the country following the sector’s opening to private investment. Prior to leading Fieldwood Mexico, Brügmann was the country manager of Artificial Intelligence solutions provider QRI from 2012-2015 and was at Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) from 2003-2012, serving as the head of Finance and Procurement for one of its business units from 2010-2012 and in investor relations from 2006-2010. 

Brügmann earned his master’s in business administration and finance from the IPADE Business School in Mexico City. He earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM).

Editor’s Note: NGI’s Mexico Gas Price Index, a leader tracking Mexico natural gas market reform, offers the below question-and-answer (Q&A) column as part of a regular interview series with experts in the Mexican natural gas market. Brügmann is the 62nd expert to participate in the series.

NGI: This month, Fieldwood announced it is set to begin commercial oil production at the Ichalkil and Pokoch fields. When will production start?

Brügmann: The Pokoch and Ichalkil platforms should start producing in September. We are finishing two projects before we start production of Area 4: the reconditioning of the Tumut-A platform, where we will separate and meter the production, and the repair of the Tumut-Chuc pipeline, where we are helping Pemex.

NGI: Does Fieldwood anticipate any natural gas production at the Ichalkil and Pokoch fields? 

Brügmann:  Indeed, we expect to produce 55 MMcf/d by the end of 2021 and to reach a maximum rate of 130 MMcf/d by 2023. This production should contribute positively to the supply of gas in the Southeast of Mexico.

NGI: What are the comparative advantages and disadvantages of operating as a private exploration and production (E&P) company in Mexican waters?

Brügmann: For us, one of the main advantages is the transparency with which we manage our operations. This includes significant government oversight of the development of our project through the reports we issue to the authorities such as Energy Ministry Sener, Mexico’s Energy and Environment Security Agency ASEA and upstream regulator Comisión Nacional de Hidrocarburos (CNH).

NGI: How do Mexico shallow water fields compare to other plays in terms of breakeven costs and emissions intensity?

Brügmann: The Ichalkil and Pokoch project is a very favorable project in terms of finding and development costs. The materiality of hydrocarbon recoverable reserves combined with the high productivity of wells makes this a very competitive project and one with significantly fewer emissions compared to conventional and unconventional developments onshore.    

We have also invested significantly in new technology with high efficiency to minimize emissions, particularly those related to methane which has more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide after it reaches the atmosphere, during the first 20 years.   

Finally, in addition to complying with air emissions and air quality regulation in Mexico, we have adopted International Finance Corporation standards and Equator Principles in order to improve the assessment, monitoring and reporting of emissions of our production operations.

NGI: How has the relationship between Fieldwood and the Mexican government evolved during the current administration?

Brügmann: In Mexico there are 14 regulatory entities that oversee the oil and gas production sharing contracts. CNH, ASEA and the Tax Administration Service (SAT) are the entities that we interact with the most. With the current administration we have always had good communication and support. Nonetheless, since the project is one of the first offshore developments in the country and the first international development for Fieldwood, we have faced the traditional challenges that companies face in a nascent industry with new regulation that needs to be put to the test.

NGI: What do you think the E&P market will look like for private companies in Mexico in the next five years?

Brügmann: I see a bright future for the E&P industry in the future since Mexico has a very high geologic potential and will significantly benefit from the adoption of new technologies and international experience from operators.