Argentina oil, gas output dropped in July: industry group

Buenos Aires (Platts)--27Sep2005

Argentina's oil and natural gas production dropped in July from a year  
earlier, continuing a steady decline that's threatening to turn the energy  
exporter into a net importer as soon as 2008, according to data released 
Tuesday by the Argentine Oil and Gas Institute (IAPG). 
     Crude output dropped 4.3% to 668,460 b/d in July from 698,860 b/d in July
2004, according to the industry group. Compared with June's 668,985 b/d,  
production was down 0.1%.
     Gas production, meanwhile, is also declining because of limited
exploration, even as a growing economy bolsters demand. Output fell 0.1% to
150.3-mil cu m/d  in July from 150.5-mil cu m/d a year earlier. Compared with
June's 150-mil cu m/d, production was up 0.2%. 
     Oil production has been dropping since a high of 880,460 b/d in 1998, the
longest period of decline since Argentina first found oil in 1907. This is  
largely because producers are failing to carry out exploration to replace  
reserves that have been declining at a rate of 2-8% since 2002. Producers say 
they are withholding exploration investment because of regulatory uncertainty,
domestic fuel pricing caps and 25-45% taxes on oil exports. 
--Charles Newberry; newsdesk@platts.com

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