By David Alire Garcia and Adriana Barrera
MEXICO CITY, Aug 7 (Reuters) - After a months-long delay inpassage of a landmark overhaul of Mexico's state-run energysector, the government now plans to accelerate the timetable forinking joint ventures with private oil firms to reverse a slumpin oil output, a senior government official said.
Mexico's Congress put the finishing touches on anenergy-policy revamp on Wednesday night, approving bills thatimplement a reform that ends the decades-old monopolies ofstate-owned oil company Pemex and national powercompany CFE and aims to lure billions of dollars ininvestment.
The energy ministry will now announce a month ahead ofschedule which oil and gas fields Pemex will keep, following thereform in a so-called 'Round Zero' allocation.
That in turn brings forward the timeline for tie-ups betweenPemex and major oil companies, which will also later be able tooperate alone, part of a wider economic reform drive spanningtelecoms to taxes that aims to boost Mexico's economic growth.
"Round Zero will be announced next week," a seniorgovernment official told Reuters on condition of anonymity.
Oil majors like Chevron and Royal Dutch Shell Plc have said they are eyeing new opportunities closely.
The cornerstone of the energy reform, a new hydrocarbonslaw, sets out a new contractual framework that offers privatecompanies a cut of profits or production. But all-importantcommercial terms will not be known until the finance ministrysets them for upcoming public tenders.
"I think companies will be more convinced and satisfied oncethey have contracts in their hands," said Miriam Grunstein, anenergy specialist with Mexico City's CIDE research institute."Right now, they have nothing."
The newly empowered hydrocarbons commission will regulatethe sector, supervise contracts, manage bid rounds, and sanctionviolations including the power to rescind contracts.
Grunstein added that the hydrocarbons law forbids companiesfrom appealing the termination of contacts via internationalarbitration, a departure from international best practices."That's a pretty deadly provision for any company," she said.
The final package of bills approved on Wednesday allow thegovernment to absorb a portion of the massive pensionliabilities shouldered by Pemex and CFE so long as both cannegotiate a leaner pension scheme with their respective unions.
Shifting a chunk of pension debt to the government waspitched as way to prepare both for competition.
The energy ministry will determine which oil and gas fieldswill be put up for bid starting next year.
"We are very encouraged," Jeff Miller, president of NorthAmerica's top oilfield services provider Halliburton,said in an emailed statement to Reuters.
While reforms to the oil sector garnered most of theattention during the debate, a complete opening of the powersector will likely see the first investments. The reform createsan independent grid operator as well as Mexico's first-everwholesale electricity market, long the sole domain of CFE. (Editing by Simon Gardner and Alden Bentley)
