22-08-08 Mexico's state oil company Pemex produced 1.01 mm bpd of oil from its Cantarell project in July, down 35.5 % year-on-year, according to figures on the company's website.
July production was down 4.10 % from June this year. The July output was the lowest from Cantarell since November 1995, when production was 965,459 bpd.

But the November 1995 output reflects the fact Pemex closed wells in response to Hurricanes Opal and Roxanne. Cantarell was producing at roughly 1.06 mm bpd at the time under normal operating conditions, a Pemex spokesperson told. The last time production from Cantarell was so low under normal operating conditions was June 1990, the spokesperson said.
Pemex expects output to fall to 1 mm bpd at Cantarell by the end of 2008, Vinicio Suro, deputy director of planning and evaluation at Pemex's E&P subsidiary (PEP), said during the second quarter earnings webcast. Production was 1.15 mm bpd in the first half of 2008, down by 457,000 bpd from the same six-month period of 2007due to the field's natural decline.

The energy ministry (Sener) forecasts a 14.1 % annual decline at Cantarell in 2007 through 2016, the ministry said at the end of last year. The company produced 2.78 mm bpd in July 2008, down 12.1 % from 3.17 mm bpd year-on-year. Production from Cantarell made up 36.2 % of total compared to 50.0 % in July 2007.
Some 62.2 % of crude produced in July was heavy, while 30.3 % was light and the remainder extra light. Of total production, 80.1 % came from marine regions, 16.8 % from the southern region and the remainder from the northern region.

Crude exports in the period fell 21.6 % to 1.38 mm bpd. Of total crude exports, 90 % went to the US and 10 % to Europe. Export revenue in July grew 48.9 % to $ 5.24 bn on higher crude prices.
The average export price of Mexican crude in July 2008 was $ 122.79/b, up 90.3 % from $ 64.54/bbl in the same month last year. Companywide, Pemex exports were $ 5.95 bn in July 2008, up 52.6 % year-on-year.