Mexico’s Lopez Obrador Throws Down Gauntlet To Oil Majors

Mexico’s new President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Dec. 5 he will not cancel contracts issued to foreign and national oil companies by his predecessors but challenged them to pump oil quickly or no further oil fields will be offered.

Lopez Obrador took office on Dec. 1, promising to increase the government’s role in the energy industry and roll back what he described as a 36-year neo-liberal era in which successive governments gradually opened up the economy.

During the election campaign, he pledged to review the contracts for any signs of corruption. He and his team have not said they have uncovered any wrongdoing in the contracts already awarded.