The barge YPF arrives in Bahia, which will liquefy to export the gas Vaca Muerta

Adrián Luciani
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Tomorrow, the barge engaged by YPF for the industrialization of gas Vaca Muerta will enter the estuary of Bahía Blanca.
This is an unprecedented process in the country that will generate exports in the months when this energy resource abounds.
At the same time, it is the starting point for a much more ambitious project, such as the construction of a liquefaction plant land in Bahia.
This time, and contrary to what happened in October 2018 with the farewell of the head of regasification and the presence of President Mauricio Macri, there will be no political act for him. welcome on the houseboat.
This decision may be related to the versions that foresee a possible shortage of gas in winter and a possible return of the regasification vessel.
Although, as was timely pointed out, the government denied this scenario, this refusal was made by second- or third-line spokesmen who did not identify themselves.
This week, Jorge Lapeña, a UCR reference in the energy sector and former sector secretary, said that "the autumn / winter 2019 is too close to continue to develop an energy policy with the depth level of a practical work of an intermediate level Argentine university ".

Through Twitter, the former official has hinted at the new transcended decision that the Energy Secretariat has decided that the LNG regasification vessel operating in Bahia would not return. Next winter.
According to Lapeña, "eliminating the LNG regasification vessel in Bahía Blanca can have very negative political and social consequences for the government that has adopted it," emphasizing that "during an election year that plays with fire".
A few days ago, during the presentation of the project "Tango" in a hotel in downtown of our city, the leaders of YPF said they did not have any information about a possible return of the descaling agent to Bahia.
In any case, they pointed out that, if necessary, the barge for export could be moved and leave the mega site to a regasifier.
The engineers consulted by La Nueva indicated that Ingeniero White's historic sites 5 and 6 would be a good place for a temporary repositioning of the barge, although they have ruled out such a measure because of its economic cost. and politics.
"It would be a piece of paper to bring back the regazifier after all that the President of the Nation had said last October," they said.
"Before that, the government will resort to buying more expensive liquid fuel and elsewhere," they added.

Scheduled schedule

In April, after a few months of adjustments and technical tests, the barge will begin converting liquefied natural gas (LNG) into products from oil fields in the south of the country, mainly in Vaca Muerta.
Its operation will allow Argentina, for the first time in its history, to export LNG using existing surpluses outside the winter season.
This is the reverse that occurred between the regasification vessels of 2008 and 2018.
They took the imported LNG by LNG carriers and dumped it in the gaseous state in the main ducts, thus strengthening the country's industrial and housing supply.
The "Caribbean FNLG", now renamed "Tango FNLG", was transported from China by the special vessel "Forte".

Monday and Tuesday

Precisely tomorrow, this ship will enter the main channel and between Monday and Tuesday, it will leave the barge in front of the wharf of Compañía Mega, in the sector of Cangrejales.
Then, several tugs will be responsible for locating the floating liquefaction facility at its final location, where the regasification vessels were operating.
The arrival of the barge was agreed last November between YPF President Miguel Gutiérrez and the CEO of the Dutch company Exmar, Nicolas Saverys, a provider of floating solutions for the exploitation, transport and transformation of gas .
As announced, the project will generate revenues of more than $ 20 million a year.

No history

This is the first floating LNG export project in Latin America, the fourth in the world to include Argentina in the selected group of exporting countries such as Malaysia, Qatar, Nigeria and Russia, among others.
The floating liquefaction unit is new because it was built for a similar project in Colombia that did not flourish.
It is 144 meters long and 32 meters long; its size is therefore equivalent to half that of the regasification agents operating in the local port.
It has a storage capacity of 16,100 cubic meters of LNG and a liquefaction of 2.5 million cubic meters of natural gas per day. Its annual production equals the consumption of one million homes. "

Spearheads of a much larger project
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In fact, beyond the expectations created, the start of the barge will spearhead a much larger project, such as the construction of a land liquefaction plant in Galván. It is even a pilot experiment where Argentina will manufacture its first weapons in the export of LNG and will sell gas that can not be stored in the months it remains.
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The barge will export between eight and ten ships a year while a land plant has a production capacity 20 times higher. Its cost, between $ 4 and $ 5 billion, is still being studied, although in reality you need a company willing to partner with YPF in a company that is the state oil company.