石油设备网讯 据普氏能源4月10日消息 阿根廷能源部长Gustavo Lopetegui周二表示，阿根廷国有石油公司YPF正准备从瓦卡穆尔塔出口轻质原油，这是联邦政府预计随着页岩开采产量增加而增加的趋势。
Lopetegui在布宜诺斯艾利斯举行的阿根廷天然气和石油峰会上说：“这是多年来我们第一次从内乌肯盆地出口轻质油。”
他补充说，作为最大的生产商，YPF已经完成了第一批出货，并将在未来几周内完成第二批出货。
阿根廷能源部估计，作为世界上最大的页岩矿之一的瓦卡穆尔塔将使该国石油产量从今年的50万桶/日增长至2023年的100万桶/日，翻一番。由于国内需求不足50万桶，这意味着大约有一半可以用于出口。
Lopetegui说：“从瓦卡穆尔塔出口的所有新石油，其目的地将是全球。”
由于出口潜力和页岩资源的质量，雪佛龙、壳牌和墨西哥维斯塔石油天然气等公司正在推动该地区石油项目，预计2023年至2025年期间，其石油当量将达到6万至10万桶/日。
挪威雷斯塔能源高级副总裁Ryan Carbrey在会议上表示，事实上，瓦卡穆尔塔的石油产量预计到2021年底将达到20万桶/日。
Lopetegui表示，该地区2月份日产量为7.8万桶，同比增长70%。
他补充说，自2018年5月以来，这一增长已经停止了该国原油的进口，这意味着炼油厂将在当地购买所有原油，因此生产商可以出口任何额外的产量。
为了出口原油，Lopetegui说，通往布宜诺斯艾利斯省布兰卡港的管道在内乌肯东有容量。政府正致力于一个项目，将一条管道重新投入使用，将供应物资输送到智利的港口，然后通过太平洋出口。
他说，如果不付出多大努力，阿根廷可以开始出口10万桶/日，而通过小规模投资，阿根廷可以将这一数字翻倍至20万桶/日。
Lopetegui说，要达到10万桶/日，可能需要几年时间。
顾问之一Roberto Brandt表示，有四个石油管道私人项目正在提案阶段。他补充说，随着页岩油产量的增长，从澳大利亚南部盆地和圣乔治湾出口其他类型原油的潜力也在增加。这些盆地主要生产较重的原油，其中一些定期出口。
虽然目前还没有开始受到出口的瓶颈影响，但位于瓦卡穆尔塔大部分地区的内乌肯能源部副部长Gabriel Lopez提醒说，需要中游项目来维持生产和出口增长。
他说：“我们睡不着。”
如果新的输油管道不能很快投入建设，该省的产量将在2022-23年达到35万桶/日的峰值，高于目前的13.5万桶/日，会限制了出口增长。
Lopez在活动期间说：“如果我们没有新的管道容量，那么在两三年内，管道将满负荷。”
王磊 摘译自 普氏能源
原文如下：
Argentina sees steady growth in light crude exports from Vaca Muerta
Argentina's state-led YPF is preparing a shipment of light crude from Vaca Muerta, a trend the federal government expects to gain as production increases from the shale play, Argentinian Energy Secretary Gustavo Lopetegui said Tuesday.
"This year for the first time in many years we have started to export light oil from the Neuquen basin," where the play is located, Lopetegui said at the Argentina Gas and Oil Summit in Buenos Aires.
The biggest producer in the play, YPF has made a first shipment already and will make the second in the next few weeks, he added.
Argentina's energy department has estimated that Vaca Muerta, one of the world's largest shale plays, will lead a doubling of the country's oil production to 1 million b/d in 2023 from 500,000 b/d this year. With domestic demand at less than 500,000, that means around half will be available for export.
"For all of the new oil from Vaca Muerta, its destination will be the world," Lopetegui said. "This is starting to happen today."
With the export potential, as well as the quality of the shale resources, companies like Chevron, Shell and Mexico's Vista Oil & Gas are pushing ahead on projects in the plays's oil window that are each estimated to plateau at 60,000 to 100,000 b/d of oil equivalent between 2023 and 2025.
Indeed, Vaca Muerta's oil production is expected to reach 200,000 b/d by the end of 2021, Ryan Carbrey, senior vice president of Rystad Energy, said at the conference.
The play produced 78,000 b/d in February, up 70% year on year, Lopetegui said on the sidelines of the event.
The growth has halted crude the country's imports since May 2018, meaning that refineries are buying all locally and so producers can export any additional output, he added.
To export the crude, Lopetegui said there is capacity on a pipeline to a port in Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires province, due east of Neuquen. The government is working on a project to put back in service a pipeline to take supplies to ports in Chile for export via the Pacific.
Without much effort, Argentina can start exporting 100,000 b/d, and with minor investments it can double that to 200,000 b/d, he said.
Lopetegui said it could take "a couple of years" to reach 100,000 b/d.
Roberto Brandt, one of his advisors, said there are four oil pipeline private projects in the proposal phase. He added that as shale oil production grows, the potential increases to export other types of crude for export from the southern basins of Austral and San Jorge Gulf. Those basins produce mostly heavier crudes, of which some is exported on a regular basis.
While there are no immediate threats of bottlenecks for starting exports, Gabriel Lopez, the deputy secretary of energy in Neuquen, where most of Vaca Muerta is located, warned that midstream projects are needed to sustain the production and export growth.
"We cannot sleep on this," he said.
If new oil pipelines are not put into construction soon, the province's production could peak at 350,000 b/d in 2022-23, up from 135,000 b/d currently, limiting export growth.
"In two or three years the pipelines will be filled if we don't have new pipeline capacity in place," Lopez said on the sidelines of the event.
