Mexican integrated energy firm Petroleos Mexicanos has decided to extend its non-commercial R&D agreement with US-based integrated energy giant, ExxonMobil, according to Petrol World.
Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) and ExxonMobil will exchange information relating to resource extraction as part of the agreement. However, any profit-sharing agreement will not be possible due to legislation that prohibits Pemex from such deals.
Petrol World noted that the Mexican law which prohibits Pemex from signing profit-sharing agreements with other firms is expected to be reviewed and be the subject of a congressional vote in April 2008.
Mexican President Felipe Calderon is reportedly seeking to open up the Mexican energy sector to foreign investment but is facing opposition from country’s lawmakers, who consider that such considerations will lower Pemex’s profits, according to Petrol World.
Pemex’s profits are a major part of the Mexican budget and reportedly fund a majority of the country’s social development projects, making it difficult to proceed with any agreements that may dilute the firm’s profits, according to Petrol World.
Enrique Bravo, an analyst at the Eurasia Group as quoted by Petrol World, said: The government wants to propose an ambitious energy reform that would include opening downstream oil to private investment, but a number of factors are pushing it to wait for a more appropriate time to publicly announce a proposal.