Vaca Muerta Institute begins operations with plan to train 2,400 workers in its first year

The Vaca Muerta Institute (Instituto Vaca Muerta, or IVM) was officially inaugurated Monday at its headquarters in Neuquén’s Technology Park, with executives from the financing companies, along with local government officials and union leaders, in attendance. Classes had already begun last week with an initial group of students.

During a tour of classrooms and laboratories attended by Shale24, Fundación YPF CEO Gustavo Schiappacasse said the goal is to train 2,400 new workers for Vaca Muerta, Argentina’s flagship shale play. More than 30,000 people entered the system to review requirements, and 17,000 ultimately applied.

In this first stage, the institute selected an initial cohort of 672 students, with two additional rounds of 854 students each planned. 

“We will have to make adjustments because this is something new. The institute’s capacity, considering all classrooms and availability across three shifts — morning, afternoon and evening — is between 4,000 and 5,000 people per year,” Schiappacasse said.

The facility spans 2,625 square meters and includes four simulator rooms, applied chemistry and automation/PLC laboratories, mechanical and electrical workshops, eight classrooms and a 100-seat auditorium.

In designing the institute, IVM drew on the experience of Halliburton’s training well in the United States and the South Alberta Institute of Technology, where its team was invited.

The academic offering includes seven core upstream tracks: drilling, hydraulic fracturing, instrumentation, production, mechanical maintenance, electrical maintenance and operational safety in oilfields, with courses lasting four months. The curriculum reflects work carried out by Fundación YPF to identify the critical areas expected to require the most labor during this phase of Vaca Muerta’s development.

At the training well located in YPF’s Río Neuquén field, students will be able to perform critical maneuvers under real operating conditions. It is the only facility of its kind in Argentina and one of the few in the region, aimed at shortening the learning curve and boosting productivity from day one.

“The energy industry has a generational responsibility to develop Vaca Muerta, and for that we need education,” said Horacio Marín during the inauguration. He was joined by Río Negro Gov. Alberto Weretilneck, Neuquén Gov. Rolando Figueroa, Human Capital Minister Sandra Pettovelo, Neuquén Mayor Mariano Gaido and oil union leader Marcelo Rucci.

“There is no growth without education. There is no growth if we do not work to provide opportunities for everyone,” Marín said. “Here, we invested as private companies. The idea that we were waiting for the state to invest for us is over. All I can say is that we did it — and we did it together.”

The companies already participating as operator partners in the IVM are YPF, TotalEnergies, Vista Energy, Chevron, Pluspetrol, Shell Argentina, Pampa Energía and Compañía General de Combustibles. Service companies involved include Halliburton, San Antonio Internacional, DLS Archer, Pason DGS, Oilfield & Production Services, Industrias Juan F. Secco, Contreras Hermanos, Calfrac Well Services, Marbar, Wenlen, Milicic, TSB, Huinoil, PECOM, Clear, Duralitte, Grupo Horizonte, NOV and SIAM.