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 ARGENTINA
South America
Lack of growth in production through the 1980s led
Argentina to commence deregulation of its industry in 1991, the first in
South America. Yacimientos Petroliferos Fiscales SA (YPF), the state
company, was privatised and, after taking over Maxus Energy, it
was itself taken over by Repsol.
 The deregulation led to an increase
in exploration success and production, especially due to increasing
NGLs. Output rose to a peak in 1998. However, the years 1999 and 2000 saw a rapid decline
and, after briefly being arrested, decline is continuing.
The
onshore Neuquen, San Jorge and Austral (Magallanes) basins are of most importance in
the centre-west and south of the country, although some production also
comes from the north near the border with Bolivia. All areas are now
well explored
with EOR programmes installed on the older fields.
 Some production has been
realised offshore in the far south since 1989 in the Magellan Straits
and off Tierra del Fuego from the Austral
Marine Basin.
A number of other offshore basins line the Atlantic coast.
From north to south they are the Salado, Colorado, Rawson, San Julian, Malvinas
basins. Offshore exploration began in 1976 and
discoveries were made in the southern Austral Marine and Malvinas Basins
in the 1980s. However there are few wells elsewhere and large areas of acreage
are open. Unlicensed acreage is re-offered every 6 months.
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CAPITAL
Buenos Aires
Population
39.9 million
Onshore area
(000's sq kms)
2,766.9
Offshore area
(000's sq kms)
NEW
OIL PEAK YEAR
1998 |
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