A week after one of its subsidiaries cancelled plans for a multibillion-dollar liquefaction plant in British Columbia, Malaysian energy giant Petronas had better news with another subsidiary being awarded a shallow-water block in the Gulf of Mexico.
PC Carigali Operations was the successful subsidiary, earning the rights to explore and develop Block 6 in the Salina Basin. It will operate the block in 50-50 partnership with Colombia’s national oil firm Ecopetrol.
Last year Petronas was among the first foreign beneficiaries of Mexico’s energy reform policy when it was awarded deep-water Block 4 and Block 5 in a joint venture. Mexico is opening up its oil resources to competition after about 70 years of monopoly by the state firm Pemex.
A week ago, Pacific Northwest LNG, in which Petronas holds a majority stake, cited market conditions when it called off its planned $36bn investment in a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility plant on Lelu Island in the district of Port Edward, northwest BC.
