IAEE Members and subscribers to The Energy Journal: Please log in to access the full text article or receive discounted pricing for this article.

Mexico's Economic Reform: Energy and the Constitution

Abstract:
Oil is a fundamental component of nationhood in Mexico. The 1938expropriation of oil resources concluded a process of internal politicalconsolidation and thus became the most important symbol of nationalism. Mexico has been undergoing a process of economic reform that has altered the country's economic structure and has subjected it to international competition. Oil in particular and energy in general have been left untouched. There is recognition that without an equal reform of the energy industry, the potential for success will be significantly limited. While the Constitution allows private investment in the industry-with the exception of the resource properties themselves--the Regulatory Law bans any private participation. Because of its political sensitivity, however,amending the law in order to reform the oil industry will necessitate a domestic initiative rather than foreign pressure. In this perspective, NAFTA served to slow and postpone the reform of the industry, rather than the opposite. Once NAFTA is well in place, the industry will have to face competition.

Purchase ( $25 )

Energy Specializations: Petroleum – Policy and Regulation

JEL Codes: Q40: Energy: General, Q41: Energy: Demand and Supply; Prices, Q38: Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation: Government Policy, Q35: Hydrocarbon Resources

Keywords: Oil, Pemex, Mexican Constitution, Energy policy, Reform

DOI: 10.5547/ISSN0195-6574-EJ-Vol14-No3-11

Published in Volume14, Number 3 of the bi-monthly journal of the IAEE's Energy Economics Education Foundation.

 

© 2023 International Association for Energy Economics | Privacy Policy | Return Policy