Mexico’s Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) plans to use its new 2003 budget of 108.4 billion pesos (US$10 billion) to fund activities within its production and exploration unit in an effort to raise its natural gas and crude oil output and to replenish its declining reserves. The budget is the largest ever authorized by Mexico’s Congress, according to Pemex.

Pemex said that with a $10 billion a year budget through 2006, it could increase its natural gas output by 47% and its crude output 34%. Last year, gas production averaged 4.4 Bcf/d; by 2006, Pemex plans to raise production to 7 Bcf/d. Of the total, nearly 2 Bcf/d will come from its prolific Burgos gas fields in northeastern Mexico. In 2002, crude oil production was about 3.2 million bbl/d; by 2006, output will reach about 4 million bbl/d.

Top initiatives this year include concentrating on raising light crude production in southeastern Mexico and maintaining heavy crude output levels at Cantarell, which lies offshore the southern Mexican Gulf Coast. It also hopes to increase enthusiasm for its multiple service contracts (MSCs), which would allow private investment into its natural gas infrastructure. The first MSC transactions are scheduled to be announced in February (see Daily GPI, Oct. 15, 2002).

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