Mexico has discovered a big oil deposit in deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico that could potentially be equal to one-third of national crude production, President Felipe Calderon announced Wednesday.
The light oil found by state-owned energy company Pemex may hold reserves of between 250 million and 400 million barrels of crude, "and probably more," Calderon said in remarks at the presidential residence of Los Pinos.
"Pemex has made the first big oil find in deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico," he said. "If the parameters are confirmed, the figure would equal one-third of national annual oil production."
The discovery now has to be certified. The deposit was found 180 kilometers from the Mexican state of Tamaulipas and 39 kilometers south of U.S. maritime waters.
Pemex produced 2.55 million barrels per day last year. Its production had dropped to 2.6 million bpd in 2009 from 3.2 million in 2006.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2012
