Argentina Watch: Offshore monitoring, gas price public hearing

Offshore hydrocarbons activity in Argentina will have an “environmental component” from now on, according to environment minister Juan Cabandié.

The comment comes after the country authorized Norwegian upstream company Equinor to shoot 3D seismic at three blocks off the coast of Buenos Aires province and granted an extraction license for one of them. 

The green light sparked environmental protests.

The environmental component will involve “reviewing, assisting, being present during seismic prospecting, having technicians and scientists who can give the go ahead for each process,” Cabandié said in a statement.

Equinor told BNamericas earlier in the week that it did not have a specific start date for the seismic acquisition campaign as yet. 

Argentina held its first offshore licensing round in more than 20 years in 2019. Eighteen blocks were awarded to 13 companies, among them ExxonMobil, Total Austral, Equinor, BP, Eni and Mitsui. Winning bidders presented environmental impact studies and the combined committed exploration investment was US$720mn. 

About 17% of gas consumed in Argentina comes from offshore fields. Current offshore hydrocarbons production comes from Total Austral and Enap Sipetrol-operated blocks in shallow waters in the Austral basin, in the country’s south. They chiefly produce gas.

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Argentina’s federal energy department said it would hold a public hearing this month on the rules related to natural gas production incentive scheme Plan Gas.

A discussion will be held on the topic of gas prices at the point of injection into the transport system and the proportion shouldered by the state.

The audience is due to be held online on January 31, according to a resolution in the official gazette.

A separate public audience is scheduled to be held on January 19 to discuss the “temporary adjustment” of gas transport and piped-gas distribution rates. Gas transporters and distributors have sought rate hikes, citing the impact of high inflation on revenue.

Read the resolution here, in Spanish.