Buenos Aires, 8 September (Argus) — South America’s plans for regional energy integration could take shape this year as countries look to take advantage of Argentina’s vast Vaca Muerta unconventional natural gas.
Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay are jockeying to transport Vaca Muerta gas to Brazil, the region’s largest consumer, while pipelines to other markets, such as Peru, could also develop.
Argentina’s state-owned YPF and private firms are monetizing Vaca Muerta’s 308 Tcf of gas reserves as estimated by the US Energy Information Administration, building gas distribution pipelines and a three-stage LNG project that could produce up to 30mn tonnes (t)/yr by the end of the decade.
Representatives from the five countries will gather in Paraguay 16-17 September to meet on energy integration.
Bolivia’s state-owned YPFB maintains that it is the best option.
“Our infrastructure exists and does not require any major investments,” Oscar Claros, YPFB’s manager for gas export contracts, told Argus. “If there were the need to add capacity, the investment would be much less than building a new pipeline.”
Bolivia interconnects with Argentina and Brazil through nearly 1,000km (620 miles) of pipelines. The system has a capacity for 32mn m³/d of gas and Claros said only around 50pc is used. YPFB has pledged to move 14mn m³/d of gas from Argentina to Brazil.
Uruguay also connects with Argentina through a 215km (134-mile) pipeline that supplies the Uruguayan capital, Montevideo.
President Yamandu Orsi’s government envisions extending that pipeline around 300km to southern Brazil along Uruguay’s coast.
“We have a technical plan for demand and what would be required for infrastructure so that Uruguay can be a viable connection between Argentina and Brazil,” Fernanda Cardona, Uruguay’s minister for industry, energy and mining, told Argus.
Paraguay and Argentina signed an initial agreement in July to study options for a 1,050km pipeline linking the countries. Investment would be around $2bn.
But Claros said Bolivia is not only an option for Brazil.
Bolivia’s pipeline system extends to the capital La Paz, which is geographically close to Peru and studies were done in the past to transport gas to Peru.
“There is a project, which is still in the concept phase, to build a pipeline for gas exports from Bolivia to southern Peru,” he said.
Argentina already exports gas to Chile through seven pipelines, including the 463km GasAndes pipeline with 10.5mn m3/d of capacity that supplies central Chile.
Argentina’s natural gas production was 160.6mn m³/d, up by 5.7pc from a year earlier and the highest monthly total since 2000.
By Lucien Chauvin
