On December 17, 2015, Mexico's National Hydrocarbons
Commission (Comisión Nacional de Hidrocarburos-CNH)
published the bid guidelines for the much-anticipated first auction
of deepwater blocks. The fourth auction to take place under
Mexico's Round One, CNH-R01-L04/2015 will consist of 10
deepwater blocks. Four blocks will be located in the
Cinturón Plegado Perdido area, off the
coast of the State of Tamaulipas and near the maritime boundary
with the United States, and six will be located in the Cuenca
Salina area between the coasts of the State of Veracruz and
the State of Tabasco. The water depth of the blocks varies between
1,500 and 3,000 meters.
The date for the auction is expected to be announced in 2016, with
the auction taking place within 90 days of the announcement.
According to estimates provided by Mexico's Ministry of Energy,
each deepwater block will require approximately US$4.5 billion to
be developed over the 50-year term of the concession, which will be
pursuant to a license agreement.
Successful bidders will be entitled to keep 100 percent of the
hydrocarbons from the deepwater blocks, subject to the obligation
to pay royalties, taxes, and other fees to the Mexican government.
For a consortium to qualify to bid, the operator must hold at least
a 30 percent working interest.
| Contract Areas | Location | Area (Km2) | |
| Deep Water | 1 |
Cinturón Plegado Perdido |
1,678.0 |
| 2 | 2,976.6 | ||
| 3 | 1,686.9 | ||
| 4 | 1,876.7 | ||
| 1 | Cuenca Salina | 2,381.1 | |
| 2 | 2,411.2 | ||
| 3 | 3,287.1 | ||
| 4 | 2,358.7 | ||
| 5 | 2,573.2 | ||
| 6 | 2,605.5 | ||
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