The adjustments that Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) has announced amid falling oil prices only reflect what other energy companies in the world are also making, stated Western Hemisphere Department director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Alejandro Werner.
Speaking at the launch of “Power Play; Energy and Manufacturing in North America,” hosted by the IMF, the official said the jolt provoked by dropping prices has also weakened Mexico’s partners in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
“All the (energy) companies are adjusting their investments. We see Canada, (where) I think that investment in the oil sector last year fell 40 percent, this year by 30 percent,” Werner said.
Last February, Pemex director José Antonio González Anaya announced a reduction of production, suspension of investments and contraction of bureaucracy. As a result, the oil company will save 65 billion pesos (just over $3.5 billion) in investment reconsideration; and will reduce costs by 29 billion pesos, thereby elevating efficiency.
They also will adjust operating expenses and investment in 6.2 billion pesos, according to official figures. Pemex will seek to maintain the production platform, stabilizing levels in the medium and long term, to ensure the viability of the company in the long term.
The adjustment will result in a reduction in daily production by 100,000 barrels down to 2.1 million barrels a day, at a price of $25 per barrel. For Werner, what is happening in Pemex before the current scenario of energy markets is “A little of what you’re seeing throughout the world.”
Werner said that with this strategy, Pemex is focused on not only adjusting to the new reality, but also to “continue to be a source of strength of the Mexican economy.”
ESTEBAN BATORY SANDORF
