YPF foresees further production decline in 2019
Argentina's state-controlled YPF foresees a 2pc-3pc decline in 2019 production, extending a downward trend that the company has been unable to shake off with rising shale flows.
The anticipated production decline to 483,000-488,000 b/d of oil equivalent (boe/d) this year partly reflects insufficient domestic gas demand and excess supply, YPF chief executive Daniel Gonzalez said in an earnings call with analysts today.
YPF's natural gas output fell by 4.6pc year on year to 42mn m3/d (1.5bn cf/d) in 2018.
Without periodic shut-ins related to weak demand, the company would have registered an additional 2.5mn m3/d of production, meaning that total output would have been flat compared to 2017, according to Sergio Giorgi, YPF's strategy and business development vice president.
In order to deal with this dynamic, YPF is exploring options to boost gas exports to neighboring Chile and is working on getting a liquefaction barge with 2.5mn m3/d of export capacity into operation.
The barge, which has arrived in Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires province after YPF and Belgian shipowner Exmar signed a 10-year charter agreement, should be operational by the third quarter of this year.
Long term, YPF is analyzing the feasibility of setting up a large-scale LNG export terminal "as part of a consortium that has yet to be put in place," Gonzalez said.
YPF has carried out a feasibility study that it will be sharing with other market participants.
"We do not intend to have a controlling or majority position in an LNG facility, all we want is to make sure the project happens because it's the only way we can develop our Vaca Muerta shale acreage," Gonzalez said.
Argentina's gas production rose by 5pc to 128.8mn m3/d last year, compared to 2017, in large part due to increased shale and tight gas production in the Vaca Muerta shale formation.
The increased gas production pressured down prices. Although YPF was expecting an average gas price of $5/mn Btu in 2018, the average was $4.5/mn Btu. For 2019, the state-controlled firm expects around $4/mn Btu.
YPF said it is becoming more selective about gas projects as it shifts further attention to crude.
"We are rethinking our investment in natural gas development in the near future," Gonzalez said.
In order to boost its crude production, YPF will focus on shale as costs continue to decline.
In Loma Campana, for example, which YPF operates in a 50:50 joint venture with Chevron, the development cost has declined to $11.4/bl of oil equivalent (boe) from $13.4/boe in 2017 while the operating cost declined to $6/boe from $9.1/boe in 2017.
YPF and Chevron will be investing some $670mn in Loma Campana this year to drill around 40 production wells with four dedicated rigs.
In La Amarga Chica, which YPF operates in a 50:50 joint venture with Malaysia's state-owned Petronas, the companies will invest $560mn this year to drill some 39 producing wells with four rigs.
In Bandurria Sur, which YPF operates in a joint venture with oil services giant Schlumberger, the companies will invest $290mn to drill eight producing wells with three rigs.
YPF does not foresee sealing any additional joint venture agreements this year.
Related news posts
Williams to resume Louisiana gas line construction
Williams to resume Louisiana gas line construction
New York, 19 July (Argus) — US natural gas pipeline company Williams on Friday told federal energy regulators it will proceed with construction of its delayed 1.8 Bcf/d (51mn m³/d) Louisiana Energy Gateway (LEG) gas gathering line in Louisiana. Williams' letter of intent to the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is the culmination of a series of lawsuits across multiple Louisiana parishes brought by US midstream rival Energy Transfer, which seeks to stop Williams and two other pipeline companies from crossing its own gas line in the Haynesville shale. While Williams is still waiting on a final ruling over two crossings in Vernon Parish, its recent legal victories over Energy Transfer and acquisition of necessary federal permits and easements from landowners have made it possible to commence construction of LEG, Williams said. The final ruling out of Vernon Parish will be decided "soon," Williams said. Williams said it intends to release its contractor to resume pre-construction activities along its right-of-way as early as 25 July, then proceed with construction. "But for the crossing litigation with Energy Transfer, construction of [LEG] would be well underway," Williams said. The litigation has pushed Williams' expected in-service date for LEG from late 2024 to the second half of 2025. Williams prevailed over Energy Transfer earlier this month in DeSoto Parish and in early June in Beauregard Parish . By Julian Hast Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
New Libyan firm starts exporting crude
New Libyan firm starts exporting crude
State-owned NOC subsidiary Agoco appears to be paying for work at its fields with crude, writes Aydin Calik London, 19 July (Argus) — A little-known Libyan firm has begun exporting crude, according to sources, official documents and ship-tracking data seen by Argus . Arkenu Oil, which describes itself as a private oil and gas development and production firm, exported 1mn bl of Sarir/Mesla from the port of Marsa el-Hariga on 10 July on the Zeus, a Suexmax . Shipping agent and port reports list Chinese trading firm Unipec as the charterer. The Zeus' bill of lading lists Libyan state-owned NOC as the sender of the consignment on behalf of Arkenu. Libyan crude sales have historically been the preserve of NOC and a handful of international oil firms that hold stakes in the country's upstream, including Italy's Eni, TotalEnergies and Austria's OMV. Turkey-based commodities trader BGN, which does not have upstream production in Libya, also regularly appears on loading programmes as a seller of the country's crude. According to a document dated 10 July, NOC allocated to Arkenu an unspecified share of production from its subsidiary Agoco's Sarir and Mesla fields in return for Arkenu carrying out development work at the sites. This implies that Agoco is paying Arkenu for the work in crude. Arkenu's 1mn bl cargo is worth around $84mn at prevailing market rates, Argus estimates. Arkenu, set up in early 2023 in the eastern city of Benghazi, says it owns modern drilling rigs and has a team of experts "who have held high positions in major oil production and development companies". It is unclear what work Arkenu has carried out for Agoco. Sarir and Mesla accounted for most of Agoco's roughly 280,000 b/d of output in 2023. Libya is politically divided between an internationally recognised administration in the west, which has historically controlled oil revenues, and a rival administration in the east, which is home to around three-quarters of the country's production capacity. Agoco is based in the east, and NOC in the west. Arkenu, NOC and Unipec have been contacted for comment. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Von der Leyen faces new Green Deal challenges
Von der Leyen faces new Green Deal challenges
The president promises a ‘clean industrial deal', but will need to make compromises over climate policy, writes Dafydd ab Iago Brussels, 19 July (Argus) — Ursula von der Leyen's re-election by the European Parliament as president of the European Commission on 18 July promises to see a doubling down on climate and energy policy, with her 2024-29 mandate stipulating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions cuts of at least 90pc by 2040 compared with 1990. "I have not forgotten how [Russian president Vladimir] Putin blackmailed us by cutting us off from Russian fossil fuels. We invested massively in homegrown cheap renewables and this enabled us to break free from dirty Russian fossil fuels," von der Leyen says, promising to end the "era of dependency on Russian fossil fuels". She has not given an end date for this, nor specified if this includes a commitment to ending Russian LNG imports. Von der Leyen went on to detail political guidelines for 2024-29. She has pledged to propose a "clean industrial deal" in the first 100 days of her new mandate, albeit without giving concrete figures about how much investment this would channel to infrastructure and industry, particularly for energy-intensive sectors. The clean industrial deal will help bring down energy bills, she says. Von der Leyen told parliament that the commission would propose legislation, under the European Climate Law, establishing a 90pc emissions-reduction target for 2040. Her political guidelines also call for scaling up and prioritising investment in clean technologies, including grid infrastructure, storage capacity, transport for captured CO2, energy efficiency, power digitalisation and a hydrogen network. She plans to extend aggregate demand mechanisms beyond gas to include hydrogen and critical raw materials, and notes the dangers of dependencies and fraying supply chains — from Putin's energy blackmail to China's monopoly on battery and chip raw materials. Majority report Passing the necessary legislation to implement her stated policies will now require approval from EU states and parliament. Unless amplified by Germany's election next year, election victories by far-right parties in France and elsewhere appear not to threaten EU state majorities for specific legislation. Parliament's political centre-left S&D and liberal Renew groups, as well as von der Leyen's own centre-right European People's Party (EPP), have elaborated key policy requests. These broadly call for the continuation of the European Green Deal — a set of legislation and policy measures aimed at 55pc GHG emissions reductions by 2030 compared with 1990. A symbolic issue for von der Leyen to decide on — or compromise on — is that of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. EPP wants to stick to technological neutrality and revise the current mandate for sales of new ICE cars to be phased out by 2035, if they cannot run exclusively on carbon-neutral fuels. The EPP wants an e-fuel, biofuel and low-carbon fuel strategy. Von der Leyen's guidelines reflect the need to gain support from centre-right, centre-left and greens. She says the 2035 climate neutrality target for new cars creates investor and manufacturer "predictability" but requires a "technology-neutral approach, in which e-fuels have a role to play". She has not mentioned carbon-neutral biofuels. It will be impossible for von der Leyen to satisfy all demands in her second mandate. This includes policy requests put forward by the EPP, ranging from a "pragmatic" definition of low-carbon hydrogen and market rules for carbon capture and storage, to postponing the EU's deforestation regulation. EU member states are expected to propose their candidates for commissioners in August, including for energy, climate and trade policy, with von der Leyen's new commission subject to a final vote in parliament in late October. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Trump vows to target 'green' spending, EV rules
Trump vows to target 'green' spending, EV rules
Washington, 19 July (Argus) — Former president Donald Trump promised to redirect US green energy spending to other projects, throw out electric vehicle (EV) rules and increase drilling, in a speech Thursday night formally accepting the Republican presidential nomination. Trump's acceptance speech, delivered at the Republican National Convention, offered the clearest hints yet at his potential plans for dismantling the Inflation Reduction Act and the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law. Without explicitly naming the two laws, Trump said he would claw back unspent funds for the "Green New Scam," a shorthand he has used in the past to criticize spending on wind, solar, EVs, energy infrastructure and climate resilience. "All of the trillions of dollars that are sitting there not yet spent, we will redirect that money for important projects like roads, bridges, dams, and we will not allow it to be spent on the meaningless Green New Scam ideas," Trump said during the final night of the convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Trump and his campaign have yet to clearly detail their plans for the two laws, which collectively provide hundreds of billions of dollars worth of federal tax credits and direct spending for renewable energy, EVs, clean hydrogen, carbon capture, sustainable aviation fuel, biofuels, nuclear and advanced manufacturing. Repealing those programs outright could be politically difficult because a majority of spending from the two laws have flowed to districts represented by Republican lawmakers. The speech was Trump's first public remarks since he was grazed by a bullet in an assassination attempt on 13 July. Trump used the shooting to call for the country to unite, but he repeatedly slipped back into the divisive rhetoric of his campaign and his grievances against President Joe Biden, who he claimed was the worst president in US history. Trump vowed to "end the electric vehicle mandate" on the first day of his administration, in an apparent reference to tailpipe rules that are expected to result in about 54pc of new cars and trucks sales being battery-only EVs by model year 2032. Trump also said that unless automakers put their manufacturing facilities in the US, he would put tariffs of 100-200pc on imported vehicles. To tackle inflation, Trump said he would bring down interest rates, which are controlled by the US Federal Reserve, an agency that historically acts independently from the White House. Trump also said he would bring down prices for energy through a policy of "drill, baby, drill" and cutting regulations. Trump also vowed to pursue tax cuts, tariffs and the "largest deportation in history," all of which independent economists say would add to inflation. The Republican convention unfolded as Biden, who is isolating after testing positive for Covid-19, faces a growing chorus of top Democratic lawmakers pressuring him to drop out of the presidential race. Democrats plan to select their presidential nominee during an early virtual roll-call vote or at the Democratic National Convention on 19-22 August. By Chris Knigh t Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Business intelligence reports
Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.
Learn more