The crisis at Mexico’s state-owned oil company Pemex is the country’s biggest problem, according to tycoon Carlos Slim Helú, 86, Mexico’s richest man, whose fortune is estimated at around 125 billion dollars.
Pemex is undergoing a deep crisis, characterized by declining output, a lack of investment and debt of roughly 85 billion dollars (about 73 billion euros).
The company ended 2025 with losses of around 2.5 billion dollars (2.148 billion euros), while the government is financing its bailout with aggressive financial support.
Slim’s annual press conference
The owner of América Móvil, Latin America’s largest mobile operator, holds a press conference each year to address a range of issues. On this occasion, he praised President Claudia Sheinbaum‘s economic management and criticised Moody’s decision to downgrade Mexico’s sovereign debt rating.
Slim also announced investments of about 5 billion dollars (4.3 billion euros) for this year, without providing details. He argued that Pemex’s priority should be to increase oil production, which he deems insufficient, and said new public and private investment could raise output by roughly 800,000 barrels per day.