Pemex treading a tightrope
Mexican producer must weigh ambitious upstream strategy with rapidly rising debt
Striking the right balance in Mexico’s upstream between expectation and reality has been a challenge for President Andres Lopez Obrador. His efforts to halt years of declining crude production started to bear fruit in mid-2019, only to be knocked off-course by the pandemic. But overly ambitious targets have often been missed, and the financial burden on state oil firm Pemex is starting to mount. The Mexican NOC ended last year with a massive MXN481bn ($22.6bn) net income loss, driven mainly by crude prices plummeting by 36pc. Most notably, the NOC increased its hefty debt pile by 14pc, reaching $113.2bn at year-end. By comparison, Brazilian peer Petrobras has paid down $35bn since its debt t
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
