Mexico approves E&P plans

Mexico's hydrocarbons commission CNH approved exploration plans for Tecpetrol subsidiary Servicios Multiples de Burgos for the onshore Misión area and the development plan for Pemex's offshore Cheek field, as well as the drilling of offshore wells by Hokchi Energy and PC Carigali.

The Cheek field is in Pemex's AE-0024-2M-Okom-07 assignation in the Cuencas del Sureste basin. The plan contemplates investment of US$339mn of which 70% will be spent on the development of the field and 20% on production activities. Cheek has 39.2Mb of 3P reserves and 6.6Mb of 1P reserves.

Cheek is one of 20 fields on which the NOC is pinning its hopes of turning short-term production around.

Tecpetrol's Misión plan involves drilling four exploration wells in the gas-rich Burgos basin requiring investment of US$15.8mn. The Misión field has 46.32Bf3boe of 3P reserves and 7.16Bf3boe of 1P reserves.

Hokchi Energy, meanwhile, had its Yaluk-1 exploratory well in the Hokchi field approved for drilling, which is due to start by June 6, and Malaysian operator PC Carigali got the green light for a US$92.8mn deepwater well in area 4 in the Saline basin, which it was awarded in licensing round 1.4.