A full two years after Mexico was opened up to competition with Pemex, the state is struggling to attract investment, said Offshore Engineer in a recent report.

In 2013 the Mexican government dismantled the structures that had allowed state-owned Pemex a monopoly over the industry. The move was hailed as a necessary step to attract investment to the country’s ailing industry.

However, a recent tender to auction offshore blocks fell well short of expectations, likely influenced by low oil prices. Still, for a Mexican government intent on showing progress, the tender was disappointing.

Onshore has shown more positive signs, with oil and service companies from Texas leading the charge. Significant investment is being stoked with unconventional methods such as horizontal fracking and drilling, a sector long ignored by Pemex, reported the Midland Reporter Telegram.

Jose Rinkenbach, chief financial officer for Mexico Petroleum Company, said, “These are really, really large lease plays, hundreds of thousands of acres that are available for these production plays.”

“When prices started to drop, a lot of people went, ‘Oh no.’ We went, ‘That’s fine for us,’” Waggoner continued. “We’re well-situated for making a healthy profit margin at low oil prices. It does give us lower service costs, a better labor pool both from management all the way to a roustabout. We really do get a bunch of folks who are unemployed looking for something to do, and Mexico is now opened up for those people.”