Two Energy Giants Join YPF's Vaca Muerta GNL Project as Producing Partners

Argentina's state energy company YPF has taken a significant step toward becoming a global liquefied natural gas (GNL) exporter by securing international partners for its Vaca Muerta project. Italian energy giant Eni and the Emirati firm XRG will join as producing partners, acquiring stakes in the gas fields that will supply the ambitious Argentina LNG initiative. This collaboration deepens the partnership beyond liquefaction and export, with Eni and XRG now investing in the upstream extraction of natural gas. YPF President and CEO Horacio Marín stated that the partners' entry into the upstream segment strengthens the project's value chain and facilitates global-scale development. Eni and XRG will each acquire 32% of the joint venture company holding the gas blocks, with YPF retaining the remaining 36%. The operation awaits regulatory approvals. The involvement of these major energy companies signals strong confidence in the project's viability, leveraging Argentina's vast unconventional gas reserves in Vaca Muerta.