Mexico’s state-owned oil company expects its natural gas production to rise slightly this year, about 0.3% over 2001, to average 4.526 Bcf/d — a small but hopeful sign for a country expecting to see its gas use grow 20% this year. Despite the small gains, Petroleos Mexicanos, also known as Pemex, said U.S. gas imports for 2002 will more than double to 673,000 Mcf/d, up from 292,200 Mcf/d a year earlier.

In its annual report released Monday, Pemex said it also expects to reduce the amount of gas its industrial facilities use this year, thus sending another 207 MMcf/d to processing plants. Pemex drilled 60% more oil and gas wells last year than a year earlier and almost as many wells as all those drilled between 1996-1998, according to the annual report.

Pemex also reported that it drilled a record 53 exploratory wells last year, with 24 successful natural gas wells and four crude oil successes. Development wells also were on the rise, with Pemex completing 406 development wells, more than double from the year before. Of those, 330 produced natural gas and 34 produced oil for a 91% success rate.

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