Mexico’s Pemex and Brazil’s Petrobras  — the two largest oil companies in Latin America — have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly boost oil production in the Gulf of Mexico.

The agreement between the two public entities focuses on the deep waters of the Gulf, with the expectation that the technology developed by the Brazilian company for extracting crude oil under thick layers of salt in the Atlantic —the so-called pre-salt— will contribute to the discovery and exploitation of new deposits in Mexican waters.

The cooperation agreement comes three months after Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva proposed the idea to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.

After the suggestion became public, Lula revealed that both presidents had discussed strengthening the economic relationship between Brazil and Mexico, particularly in the energy sector.

Valid for two years with the option to renew, the newly signed MoU covers three main areas: hydrocarbon exploration and production; the exchange of best regulatory and institutional practices; and industrial transformation such as refining, petrochemicals, fertilizers, gas processing and liquids recovery. 

Technical teams from Pemex and Petrobras will also share geological, seismic, and operational information to identify assets with the potential to increase production, including revitalizing mature fields.

“The signing of this Memorandum of Understanding opens up opportunities for cooperation for the benefit of companies, countries and their people,” Pemex CEO Juan Carlos Carpio Fragoso said. 

Meanwhile, Magda Chambriard, who heads up Petrobras, said that the MoU “is a strategic cooperation instrument with significant potential for Petrobras, which can position the company as a partner of Pemex in a scenario of strengthening oil exploration and production in Mexico.” 

Mexico News Daily