After a necessary change in the rules, which allowed individuals access to the recently-opened Mexican oil market, and after two disappointing Round One auctions, the third phase was held yesterday (December 15, 2015). All 25 available contracts were awarded, making it is the most successful round so far.
Colombian authorities should be paying close attention to not just the results of the first Mexico Round, but how the rest of the process plays out. It clearly demonstrates that contract conditions and geology weigh just as heavily as state take when deciding whether to bid or not, says a business publication.
Pacific Rubiales (TSX:PRE) and Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) are the only Colombia focused operators participating in the historic bidding round that will open the Mexican oil industry to private capital, which has advanced to the next stage.
In the transition from a state operated monopoly to a mixed scenario with private players Mexico must find ways to be competitive globally and encourage sustained private investment in exploration says Germán Arce, president of Colombia’s National Hydrocarbons Agency (ANH).