On January 31, 2018, the Comisión Nacional de Hidrocarburos (“CNH”) completed the Presentation and Opening of Bid Proposals for the Fourth Tender of Round Two (“Round 2.4”), which was first announced on July 20, 2017. Round 2.4 attracted 29 oil and gas companies from around the world including Royal Dutch Shell, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Pemex, Lukoil, Qatar Petroleum, Mitsui, Repsol, Statoil and Total, among others.

Round 2.4 included 60% of all acreage to be offered by Mexico under the current Five Year Plan. Blocks included 29 deep water contract areas (shown in the adjacent map) with an estimated 4.23 billion Barrel of Oil Equivalent (BOE) of crude oil, wet gas and dry gas located in the Perdido Fold Belt Area, Salinas Basin and Mexican Ridges. The blocks were offered under a license contract, similar to the deep water form used by the CNH in Round 1.4. After witnessing the success that companies like ENI, Talos Energy, Inc., Sierra and Premier have had in Mexico over the last several years, Round 2.4 was the biggest opportunity yet for the industry. Some of these deep water contract areas were particularly appealing because they share geological characteristics with some of the projects in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico (U.S. GOM) where these companies have already had success.