The Zama crude oil megafield represents great profits for Talos Energy, the firm that heads the private consortium that shares the operation of the field located in the Gulf of Mexico with Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex).
“The expected value of Zama is several times the capital invested to date and Talos has a broad strategic option to ultimately realize that value,” the US-owned company said in a presentation it showed to energy convention attendees. in the neighboring country to the north.
Talos Energy added that Block 7, a consortium that operates 49.9 percent of the megafield, has so far invested 111 million dollars net since its creation, although it pointed out that it has made some minimal expenses on an ongoing basis until it approves the final investment decision.
The US firm described that it is currently working with Pemex to finalize the development plan that is expected to be presented in March of the following year to the National Hydrocarbons Commission (CNH), so that the agency can approve it and start extraction activities.
He specified that this is “a critical step” before the parties can make a final investment decision in 2023.
As part of the investment made in the Zama field, four successful exploratory wells have been drilled, which have shown that there is a recoverable volume of around 700 million barrels of oil.
Pending, final decision
The US company stressed that Zama is the largest oil discovery in shallow waters on the planet in 20 years.
He indicated that as part of the shared fields unification process, it is necessary to have a Zama development plan, since it is the main input element to determine the final investment decision.
In September of last year, Talos submitted a notice of dispute to the Mexican government under the Mexico-United States-Canada (USMCA) and Bilateral Investment Agreements between Mexico and the Belgian-Luxembourg Economic Union (BLEU- BIT) in its attempt to advance negotiations on the ownership of the operator.
However, in March of this year Talos Energy received the unification resolution that names Pemex operator of the Zama unit, while the US firm will maintain a 17.35 percent stake.
Talos Energy indicated that it is currently discussing with its partners the formation of the integrated project team.
According to Pemex, it will be until the end of the first half of 2024 when the megafield begins to produce 180,000 barrels of oil per day, according to the program that it proposed to Talos Energy, but which must still be endorsed by the CNH.
The dispute over control in the operation of this field would be, according to the Mexican government, the origin of the consultations initiated by the country’s energy policy in the T-MEC.