By Jude Webber in Buenos Aires for FT.comArgentina’s flagship energy company YPF has announced a 4,500bn cubic feet shale gas discovery in Patagonia that it vowed would guarantee the country’s gas supplies for “many decades”.
The company, controlled by Spain’s Repsol, said on Tuesday that it was teaming up with Brazilian mining group Vale in a $140m deal to begin developing the discovery, which is in Neuquén province.
It invited other companies to help tap the rest of what it believes are vast energy riches.
Vale is seeking to secure gas to develop its $4.3bn Río Colorado potassium project in the nearby province of Mendoza.
“We have been able to discover huge volumes of non-conventional gas in Loma La Lata, which opens up interesting development perspectives for the country,” said Sebastián Eskenazi, YPF’s chief executive.
He declined to confirm media reports that the area could contain as much as 250,000bn cubic feet of gas, but said that it “could permit Argentina to have energy and development for many decades to come”. The 4,5000bn cubic feet discovery – which compared with Argentina’s annual consumption of 1,500bn cubic feet – was enough to take..Read Full Article
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