Mexico’s Cantarell oil output slides further

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Crude oil output from Mexico’s huge but aging Cantarell offshore field fell again to 1.243 million barrels per day in January, the lowest average monthly output level in several years, the energy ministry reported on Tuesday.

Cantarell, the jewel of Mexico’s oil industry since the late 1970s, for years had produced 60 percent of Mexico’s oil, but production has slid rapidly from its 2004 peaks.


Cantarell, which state oil monopoly Pemex sees declining at an annual rate of around 15 percent, produced an average of 1.260 million barrels per day in December, according to data on the energy ministry’s Web site.

The sprawling oil field accounted for 42 percent of Mexico’s total oil output in January, down from 43 percent in December.

Reuters