PETROLEUM FISCAL‐SYSTEM EXPERT Pedro van Meurs has been involved in Mexico for nearly 15 years, dating from the time when his firm was hired early in the Fox administration (2000‐06) to develop a unique risk‐service, farm‐out contract for Pemex. Also hired during that initial effort was the Calgary law firm McLeod Dixon; its lead attorney for the Pemex account was Jay Park.

The combined efforts of the two firms led to the model known as the Multiple Service Contract. The model required that an oil company be paid for its investments as a function of services performed that resulted in incremental gas production; the oil company would invoice Pemex for services according to an itemized price list. Payment would be paid from an escrow account that would be funded by the production deemed to be associated with the services.