Russia's Gazprom plans to partner with Argentina's state-run energy company YPF on a $1 billion project for developing natural gas in the South American country, while Germany's Wintershall is also looking at opportunities, Argentine Industry Minister Debora Giorgi said Wednesday.
Gazprom "is closing an agreement of confidentiality with YPF," Giorgi said in a statement from the 4th St. Petersburg International Gas Forum.
"The agreement will be for the exploration and production of gas in Argentina, for which $1 billion in investments is estimated," she said.
Giorgi made the comments after meeting at the conference with Alexey Miller, chairman of Gazprom's management committee.
Miller said he will send a team of specialists to Argentina in November, according to the Industry Ministry statement.
In a separate statement, Gazprom said the meeting between Giorgi and Miller involved "the development prospects for the bilateral cooperation in the gas sector, with an emphasis on exploration and production of gas from Argentine gas fields."
Gazprom said it also will look at the possibility increasing liquefied natural gas sales to Argentina, which started importing the supplies off the global market in 2008.
Gazprom said it won a tender in 2013 to supply 15 LNG cargoes with a total volume of one million tons to Argentina between 2014 and 2015.
Giorgi added that Wintershall also expressed interest at the conference of increasing its business in Argentina, possibly in partnership with Gazprom and YPF.
Wintershall has been producing oil and gas in Argentina for years, and has acreage in shale plays, including through a partnership signed in January with the state oil company of Neuquen province, Gas y Petroleo del Neuquen.
They plan to invest an initial $110 million in exploratory drilling before moving into the production phase.
Argentina is seeking investment, expertise, equipment and technology to develop shale resources estimated at among the world's largest.
The country wants to regain energy self-sufficiency after oil and gas production fell by 20% over the past decade to widen the energy trade deficit to $10 billion this year.
