Mexican businessman Carlos Slim, the country's richest man, has expanded his involvement in the country's hydrocarbons sector through a new drilling agreement with state-owned oil company Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex). His conglomerate Grupo Carso confirmed it will invest up to $1.991bn in the development of 32 wells at the Ixachi onshore field in Veracruz.

The contract, signed through Carso subsidiaries GSM Bronco and MX DLTA NRG 1, covers a three-year programme for drilling and completion. According to Bloomberg, Ixachi is considered one of Mexico’s most significant onshore deposits. It currently produces about 14,800 cubic metres of crude oil per day and 20.25mn cubic metres of natural gas, equivalent to 37,500 cubic metres of oil equivalent daily. Carso noted that 28 wells have already been drilled at the site, with its subsidiaries participating in those works.

Payments to Grupo Carso will not begin until January 2027. As detailed by El País, Pemex will make 21 monthly instalments for each well delivered, with at least 12 wells expected to be in production at the time of the first disbursement. The total value will be lower if fewer than 32 wells are completed.

Pemex’s reliance on such service contracts reflects its ongoing financial constraints. The company holds more than $98bn in financial debt and owes over $20bn to suppliers. Although the government of President Claudia Sheinbaum continues to provide financial backing through measures such as new debt issuance, Pemex’s oil output reportedly remains close to its lowest levels in four decades.

Slim’s strategy in the sector has been measured. El País traced his entry back to 2007, when Grupo Carso began pursuing small service contracts with Pemex. In 2015, he launched Carso Oil & Gas, which has since accumulated more than $2bn in energy assets, including interests in the Lakach and Zama fields and the acquisition of PetroBal in 2023. 

His portfolio also covers gas pipelines in Mexico and the United States, along with geothermal projects. Grupo Carso stated that its subsidiaries have 18 years of experience in drilling, with 19 land rigs and three offshore platforms currently in operation.

The Ixachi contract is the first of several that Pemex intends to award under mixed-service models. As noted by El Financiero, up to six additional agreements with private companies are expected to be announced in the coming months.