Mexico's state oil company Pemex said on Oct. 28 it had received a license from the United States to import U.S. light crude in exchange for its own heavier crude oil, but with a lower ceiling than originally planned.
The terms of the license will allow Pemex's commercial arm, Pemex Comercio Internacional (PMI), to import U.S. light crude from October for one year, with the limit capped at 75,000 barrels per day (bpd), the company said.
A Pemex spokesman said the decision to cut the original plan to import up to 100,000 barrels per day was made in accordance with the company's present needs at its refineries.
A Pemex spokesman said the first shipment would arrive in Mexico from the beginning of November.
"This license gives Mexico the opportunity to benefit from the conditions that the North American region currently presents in the global energy environment," Pemex said in a statement.
In August, the United States government decided to allow sales of U.S. crude to Mexico for the first time, marking a major milestone in loosening a contentious ban on exporting domestic oil.
Eight months prior to the U.S. government's decision, Mexico had sought formal permission for the crude swap, which would help refineries in Latin America's No. 2 economy produce more premium fuels.
In exchange, U.S. refiners would continue to get Mexican heavy oil, a better match for them than the deluge of light oil coming from Texas and North Dakota.