The economic advisor to Mexican presidential hopeful Andrés Manuel López Obrador has firmed the candidate’s support for energy reforms and said he is likely to advance policies implemented under President Enrique Peña Nieto.
Speaking at LatinFinance‘s Cumbre Financiera Mexicana in Mexico City, Abel Hibert said it would give Mexico a “bad image” to scrap the reforms that allow private investment in the energy sector.
Hibert said the reforms were added to the constitution and he backed a commitment to respect the oil and gas contracts that the government has granted. The Comisión Nacional de Hidrocarburos (CNH) last month awarded 19 out of a potential 29 deepwater oil and gas blocks. The government has awarded 91 exploration and development contracts in eight auctions since 2015, according to media reports.
Mexico’s oil and gas space opened to private investors in 2013. The state-owned energy company Pemex had held a monopoly over crude oil production since 1938.
Hibert also reaffirmed support for building a new airport in Mexico City. He said this project came backed by the federal government, with a number of engineering and construction contracts already in place.
Along with business adviser Alfonso Romo and the possible pick for finance minister Carlos Urzúa, Hibert helped draft AMLO’s 2018-2024 plan to govern.