| Vista Oil & Gas intends to invest US$157.4 million on two pilot projects in Vaca Muerta, targeting oil in Argentina’s biggest shale play. The Mexico City-based company signed an agreement last week with the Undersecretariat of Energy, Mining and Hydrocarbons of Neuquen to start the projects on Bajada del Palo, a block which will be divided in two. The decision to move forward with the projects comes as the province agreed to the division of the block and the award of 35-year exploitation concessions for both parts – called Bajada del Palo Este and Oeste, or east and west – Vista said in a statement. The start of the pilots depends on the final approval of Neuquen Governor Omar Gutierrez, it added. Once it gets the final go-ahead, Vista said it would invest US$105.6 million on drilling eight wells on Bajada del Palo Oeste over 18 months, and another US$51.8 million in drilling five wells on Bajada del Palo Este over 36 months. If the pilots show that the resources are economically viable for production, the company said it would advance into the mass development stage with an investment of US$9.3 billion in drilling 651 wells. The addition of two projects takes to 34 the number of unconventional licences in Vaca Muerta, one of the world’s largest shale plays, where IOCs such as BP, Chevron and ExxonMobil are active. Source: GERD Newsletter | 