Mensajepor Carlose » Lun Sep 23, 2013 12:13 pm
Wintershall to sign oil deal in Argentina's Vaca Muerta field<BASFn.DE>
23-Sep-2013 11:22
FRANKFURT, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Germany's Wintershall, the
oil and gas arm of chemical group BASF <BASFn.DE>, is close to
signing an agreement to search for oil in Argentina's "Vaca
Muerta" field, considered one of the largest shale reserves in
the western hemisphere, a government official said.
Wintershall plans to explore an area of 97 square kilometres
in the "Vaca Muerta", or "dead cow", formation, a spokesman for
the energy ministry of the province of Neuquen, where most of
the field is located, said on Monday.
The German partner plans to sign the agreement with the oil
and gas company of the province, Gas y Petroleo de Neuquen,
later in the day, the spokesman said during a visit to Germany.
The state-owned company already has a licence to search for
oil and gas in areas of Vaca Muerta. That enables Wintershall to
obtain exploration rights before the province auctions rights to
international investors in other areas of the field next year.
[ID:nL2N0H1231]
Wintershall, which has been active in Argentina since the
1970s and already holds concessions in the Neuquen province,
confirmed it planned to sign a non-binding letter of intent on
Monday evening, without giving more details