Talos Energy has entered an agreement to take a 50% interest in the Polok/Chinwol oil fields development in Block 29 offshore Mexico, operated by Repsol.
The project, which could recover more than 200 MMboe, is currently at the pre-FID stage. Polok and Chinwol are in the Salinas-Sureste Basin in the southern Gulf of Mexico.
Under the terms of the farm-in agreement, which remains subject to approval by Mexico's Secretaría de Energía (SENER) and the National Anti-trust Commission of Mexico, Talos would make a contingent $30 million payment once it has committed to FID, currently expected in 2027.
In addition, the company has agreed to a cash carry of up to $20 million on the next exploration well, and reimbursement of certain pre-closing costs.
Talos and Repsol would be the sole partners in the project, with Harbour Energy and Petronas dropping out.
Repsol discovered the two fields in 2020 in Miocene and Pliocene settings drilled in 500 m of water, 88 km offshore Tabasco State. In late 2024, the company awarded McDermott an EPCI FEED contract covering the subsea umbilicals, risers and flowlines.
Talos said the development will feature an FPSO that could later host tiebacks from other nearby discoveries. The amplitude-supported Miocene reservoirs encountered in Block 29, which are also the targets of other identified prospects, are analogous to fields Talos has developed and produced in the US Gulf.
The hub-style development concept could improve project economics by enabling future discoveries in the area to be connected to existing production infrastructure rather than requiring standalone facilities.
Talos is already an established operator in Mexican waters, having previously led development efforts at the Zama discovery before operatorship transferred to Pemex.
