Mexican firm eyeing Cuba offshore oil projects

Havana, April 13 (IANS/EFE) Mexican President Felipe Calderon said his country's state-owned oil company, Petroleos Mexicanos, is considering participating and investing in crude and natural gas exploration and production projects in Cuban territorial waters.

He commented at the end of his first official visit to the island, where he reached agreements to boost bilateral trade and investment, as well as bi-national cooperation in health, education, culture and sports.

On the energy front, Pemex and Cuban counterpart Cupet signed a "non-binding letter of intent" to evaluate the Mexican company's possible direct participation in oil exploration and production in Cuba's Exclusive Economic Zone in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico.

Calderon, whose term expires late this year, said before departing Cuba that Pemex was considering participating in blocks contiguous to Mexico's exclusive zone in the Gulf of Mexico, "always with full respect for both countries' sovereignty".

Cuba's EEZ covers some 112,000 sq. km and is divided into 59 blocks, 22 of which have been awarded to foreign companies such as Spain's Repsol-YPF, Venezuela's PDVSA and PetroVietnam.

--IANS/EFE

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