Analysts from UBS, Kpler, Ninepoint and Bison offer a technical take on Venezuela, Iran, energy and the market impact of geopolitical decisions led by Donald Trump and his former European allies.
The agreement marks the formal start of a strategic relationship between the two companies, aimed at boosting DAPSA’s growth through the marketing of Chevron commodities in the region. The parties will also evaluate additional areas of business integration, including the expansion of DAPSA’s supply logistics.
The four-well pilot in the shale oil window—carried out in partnership with TotalEnergies as operator—confirmed commercially viable production. It involved horizontal wells with hydraulic fracturing in the oil window, a liquids-rich shale zone distinct from the dry gas window that dominates other areas of the formation.
The pipeline will be 209 km long, linking the northern area of the Neuquén Basin with the pumping station in Allen, Río Negro. The project will expand the transport system’s capacity from 20,400 to 55,400 cubic meters per day and will connect to the Vaca Muerta Oil Sur (VMOS) system.
This video shows the extraction of extra-heavy crude, characteristic of Venezuela’s Orinoco Oil Belt. After this stage, the oil is processed using inputs supplied by Iran, then transported by pipeline and ultimately exported to China.
With a focus on shale development and the LNG project, the proceeds will be used to support the company’s aggressive investment plan in Argentina and to refinance existing liabilities. The bond, with an implied 11-year maturity and principal repayments in three annual installments starting in year nine, saw solid demand that allowed it to be priced in the middle of the initial book range of $300 million to $500 million.
When different types of crude are compared, the mistaken idea sometimes arises that one type of oil is intrinsically “better” than another, but from a process engineering and asset-optimization perspective, the reality is very different.
Merey 16 is Venezuela’s benchmark crude, a heavy and sour oil that accounts for most exports by state-owned Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA). Why it matters and what it changes for other benchmark crudes.
Viscous, high in sulfur, cheap to extract but expensive to refine, and increasingly sought after by complex refineries along the U.S. Gulf Coast and in Asia, heavy crudes are set for a hemispheric contest going forward if Merey 16 makes a comeback.
By combining the European Union’s engineering expertise and innovation capacity with Mercosur’s unique geological endowment, the treaty will make many energy projects more economically attractive.
Looking toward 2030, projected growth at Vaca Muerta could generate up to 50,000 new jobs, and the Vaca Muerta Institute is positioned as an industry-driven training option to develop upstream specializations in controlled environments.
Leading international analysts agree on a common assessment: the short-term impact will be limited, the recovery will take years, and it will depend on institutional, legal and geopolitical factors rather than a simple lifting of sanctions.
It has heavy crude refining capacity of about 749,000 barrels per day across three complexes. Its future will depend on political stability in Venezuela. Amber Energy is awaiting the completion of the sale. Three scenarios lie ahead.
With 1,791 stages, December reflected a slight slowdown, coming in below the annual monthly average of 1,982 stages and well off the record set in May at 2,588. YPF continued to dominate activity with 778 stages, accounting for 43% of the monthly total.
The rapid growth of shale oil output from Vaca Muerta has pushed Argentina’s crude production to record levels, positioning the country as the region’s fourth-largest producer, behind Brazil, Venezuela and Guyana.
