US Energy Information Administration reports that Argentina ranks among the world’s top five holders of shale crude oil and natural gas resources. They write:
Source: EIA
Crude oil and natural gas production in Argentina are both nearing record highs, driven by increasing output from the Vaca Muerta shale formation, which is offsetting declining output from conventional oil and natural gas fields. From January 2021 through September 2024, crude oil production in Argentina increased by 50%, and natural gas production rose by 27%, lifting output of both fuels near the records set in the early 2000s, according to data from the country’s energy ministry, the Secretaría de Energía de la República Argentina (SESCO).
We estimate that the Vaca Muerta shale formation, located mainly in Argentina’s Neuquén province, has 308 trillion cubic feet of technically recoverable shale gas resources and 16 billion barrels of technically recoverable shale oil and condensate resources. Argentina ranks among the world’s top five holders of shale crude oil and natural gas resources.
Crude oil production in the Vaca Muerta formation began to surge in 2021 due to:
Increased drilling activity
Technological advances in hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling
Favorable oil prices
Infrastructure improvements with the commissioning of new oil pipelines
Implementation of supportive policy measures
In September 2024, production averaged 738,000 barrels per day (b/d) of crude oil in Argentina, 15% more than in September 2023 and the most in any month since 2003. In September, oil produced in the Vaca Muerta formation accounted for 58% of the country’s total output, according to SESCO.
An average of 5.0 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of natural gas was produced in Argentina over the first nine months of 2024, 5.2% more than the same period in 2023. In August, natural gas production averaged 5.4 Bcf/d, the most of any month in 21 years. The Vaca Muerta formation accounts for more than 70% of Argentina’s natural gas production, reaching 74% (3.8 Bcf/d) in September 2024. […]
Several companies are planning floating LNG (FLNG) infrastructure in the coming years. Golar LNG has a 20-year agreement with Pan American Energy (PAE) to deploy an FLNG vessel in Argentina by 2027, targeting a production capacity of 2.45 million metric tons per year (MMmt/y). Tecpetrol SA is designing a modular onshore plant with an initial capacity of 4 MMmt/y. YPF SA, Argentina’s state-controlled energy company, plans to bring an existing FLNG facility online by 2027, aiming for 1 MMmt/y to 2 MMmt/y of additional export capacity. It is also seeking new investors for an LNG export project in Rio Negro, despite uncertainties regarding Petronas’s involvement and significant infrastructure costs.
