Zama oil find targets 2020 FID
Upgraded resource estimate from Mexican field boosts hopes of a financial decision, but a serious potential roadblock remains
Mexican president Andres Lopez Obrador took little time in shelving all planned licensing rounds when he secured office at the tail-end of 2018—rolling back a raft of energy reforms which had granted new entrants’ access to the sector for the first time since the sector’s nationally iconic 1938 nationalisation and ending state-owned oil and gas firm Pemex’s monopoly. But while further concessions have now been suspended, discoveries already made by beneficiaries of the reforms are moving towards first oil. The shallow water Zama discovery, first announced in 2017 by a consortium of operator US independent Talos Energy (35pc), Mexico’s Sierra Oil and Gas (40pc)—later taken over by Germany’s W
Also in this section
20 March 2026
Attacks on key oil and LNG assets across the Gulf mean a prolonged supply disruption, with damage to Qatar’s export capacity undermining confidence in the global gas system
20 March 2026
The US may be systemically stripping Russia of key geopolitical allies, but Moscow can reap rewards from the Hormuz crisis, both in the short and long term
20 March 2026
Disruptions to Qatari LNG exports have highlighted the risks of concentrated supply, potentially strengthening the long-term position of US exporters despite limited near-term flexibility
20 March 2026
The extent of the US-Israel war with Iran means there will be no going back to the previous market equilibrium no matter how the conflict ends






