Carlos Slim’s Grupo Carso Signs $1.99 Billion Pemex Oil Deal

Energy · Mexico

Mexico’s richest man is betting big on the country’s oil and gas. Carlos Slim’s Grupo Carso has become the most prominent private partner to state producer Pemex, powered by a string of drilling contracts.

Slim’s energy bet

Grupo Carso, the industrial conglomerate controlled by billionaire Carlos Slim, has moved aggressively into Mexico’s energy sector. A series of contracts and acquisitions has turned the group into the leading private partner of state oil company Pemex.

The strategy marks a notable expansion beyond Carso’s traditional construction and retail roots.

For readers outside Mexico, it helps to understand that Pemex is not just another oil company. It is a state-owned giant that for decades held a constitutional monopoly over the country’s entire hydrocarbon chain, from exploration to the petrol pump.

That monopoly was loosened by a landmark energy reform in 2013, which opened the door for private firms to partner with Pemex and bid on their own blocks. Slim’s push is one of the most visible results of that opening.

The push comes as Pemex, burdened by heavy debt, leans on private capital to develop fields it cannot fund alone. Carso’s deep pockets make it a natural partner for that investment gap.

A “condensate” field, such as Ixachi, produces a type of ultra-light liquid hydrocarbon that is especially valuable because it can be refined into high-quality petrol and petrochemical feedstocks. That makes the field’s geology commercially attractive beyond just the volume of barrels it can yield.

The flagship Ixachi contract

At the centre of the strategy is a US$1.99 billion contract to drill 32 wells at the Ixachi gas and condensate field in Veracruz. The project is designed to roughly double crude output from the field to around 200,000 barrels a day within three years.

Ixachi is one of Mexico’s most important onshore discoveries in recent years. Ramping up its production is central to both Carso’s ambitions and Pemex’s output goals.

Veracruz, on Mexico’s Gulf coast, has been a hydrocarbon heartland for over a century. The state already hosts a dense network of pipelines and processing facilities, which helps keep the cost of bringing new wells online lower than in more remote regions.

That existing infrastructure is one reason a field like Ixachi can be developed relatively quickly.

A growing field portfolio

Carso also took on the onshore Macavil field in southern Mexico, where it expects first results in 2027. The additions steadily broaden the group’s footprint across Mexico’s hydrocarbon map.

Each new field deepens Carso’s role in national production. The company is assembling a portfolio that spans gas, condensate and crude.

Onshore fields like Macavil are typically cheaper and faster to develop than deepwater projects, though they tend to yield smaller volumes. The mix of onshore and offshore assets suggests Carso is balancing quick wins with longer-term bets.

Buying its way in

Beyond drilling contracts, Carso has bought its way deeper into the sector. It acquired a Lukoil subsidiary to gain full control of the Ichalkil and Pokoch fields earlier in the year.

More recently, it agreed to purchase TotalEnergies’ 30% stake in an offshore Gulf of Mexico block. The acquisitions add producing and development assets to the contracts Carso has won.

Buying existing stakes from international majors is a faster route to production than starting from scratch. It also signals that some global players are choosing to reduce their exposure to Mexico, creating openings for a well-financed local buyer like Carso.

Why Pemex needs partners

Pemex carries one of the largest debt loads of any oil company in the world, limiting its ability to invest. Partnering with well-capitalised private firms like Carso lets it develop fields without shouldering all the cost.

For the Mexican government, keeping production from falling is a strategic priority. Private partners help sustain output while the state retains ownership of the resources.

This model is sometimes called a “service contract” or a “production-sharing” arrangement. In simple terms, Carso puts up the money and the technical muscle to drill, and in return it earns a fee or a share of the output, while the oil itself remains Mexico’s property under the constitution.

What it means

Slim’s expansion signals confidence in Mexican oil at a time of uncertainty over the country’s energy policy. It also concentrates a growing share of private oil activity in the hands of one conglomerate.

For investors, Carso’s energy arm is becoming a bigger driver of the group’s growth. The payoff will depend on how quickly the new fields deliver the promised barrels.

A broader question worth watching is whether Pemex’s reliance on a single dominant private partner creates a healthy competitive landscape or a lopsided one. The answer will shape how other private firms view Mexico as a place to invest.

Another open question is how Carso will manage the operational complexity of running multiple fields at once, each with different geological challenges and regulatory requirements. Execution risk grows with every new asset added to the portfolio.

More: Mexico news in English, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Grupo Carso doing with Pemex?

Carlos Slim’s Grupo Carso has signed drilling contracts with Pemex, including a US$1.99 billion deal to drill 32 wells at the Ixachi field, making it Pemex’s top private partner.

How much could production rise?

The Ixachi project aims to roughly double output from the field to around 200,000 barrels a day within three years.

What else has Carso acquired?

It bought a Lukoil unit for the Ichalkil and Pokoch fields and agreed to purchase TotalEnergies’ 30% stake in an offshore Gulf of Mexico block.

Sources

• World Oil
• Natural Gas Intelligence
• Energy Connects — TotalEnergies stake

Sources: Grupo Carso; Pemex.

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