Italy's Eni Strikes Oil Off Mexican Shores
24 March 2017 - 9:16AM
Dow Jones News
By Anthony Harrup
Italian oil company Eni SpA said Thursday that it is considering
plans to speed up development of oil fields in the southern Gulf of
Mexico after drilling a successful well in a block that it won in a
Mexican government auction.
The Amoca-2 shallow-water well in the Bay of Campeche is the
first drilled by an international oil major since Mexico opened oil
exploration and production to the private sector in a 2013 overhaul
of energy laws, the company said.
The well, in 25 meters of water, was drilled to a depth of about
3,500 meters and confirmed the presence of deposits of both heavy
and light crude. The light crude was found in deeper, newly
discovered formations. "Reserves are still being assessed, but the
well indicates a meaningful upside to the original estimates," Eni
said.
The company said it would drill additional wells this year to
appraise existing discoveries and target new pools.
The production-sharing contract is for an area off the coast of
Mexico's Tabasco state, with three oil fields which combined were
estimated to contain proven and probable reserves of 122 million
barrels of oil equivalent.
Mexico changed its Constitution in 2013 to bring foreign
investment and know-how into the industry, where state oil company
Petróleos Mexicanos has seen its output decline for more than a
decade. In its first four auctions, the government awarded 38
blocks, including onshore and deep water areas, and has so far
scheduled three auctions for this year.
Write to Anthony Harrup at anthony.harrup@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 23, 2017 18:01 ET (22:01 GMT)
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