Pemex is the state-owned petroleum company of Mexico.
The name is a shortened form of Petróleos Mexicanos, meaning “Mexican Petroleum.” Mexico created Pemex in 1938 after President Lázaro Cárdenas nationalized the country’s oil industry. The move followed a labor dispute with foreign-owned oil companies and became a major symbol of Mexican economic nationalism.
Pemex is not merely an oil producer. Its activities include exploration, crude-oil extraction, transportation, refining, natural gas, petrochemicals and fuel distribution. The company is managed by the Mexican government and has traditionally played a major role in national public finances.
A common mix-up is confusing Pemex with Brazil’s Petrobras or Venezuela’s PDVSA. Those are also large state-linked oil companies, but Pemex belongs to Mexico. Its headquarters are in Mexico City, while many of its major production operations are offshore in the Gulf of Mexico.