Mexican state oil monopoly Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, awarded two long-term contracts to develop natural gas reserves in the Burgos basin of northeastern Mexico.

The Nejo natural gas block was awarded to a consortium formed by Spain's Cobra and Mexico's Monclova Pirineos Gas, while the Monclova block was won by Construcciones Mecanicas Monclova and Administradora de Proyectos de Campos, of Mexico, along with Colombia's Production Testing Services, Pemex said in a news release Sunday.

A third block, Euro, received no bids, and will be reevaluated, the company said.

Pemex said the two natural gas contracts will involve investment of at least US$177 million in the next three years. The contracts are for up to 15 years, with investment up to US$1.35 billion