Repsol promises to ‘keep an eye’ on YPF plans
Argentina’s newly state-controlled oil and gas giant YPF has named a new board of directors, and said the company will need to invest up to $7 billion annually to reverse declining production.
Axel Kicillof, Argentina’s deputy economy minister and the main ‘hawk’ behind the expropriation of YPF from Repsol in April, was confirmed as the government’s main representative on the board. Former Schlumberger executive Miguel Galluccio was also formally named chief executive.
Repsol, which now owns 12% of YPF, was given just one of 17 seats on the board of directors. A Repsol spokesman confirmed to Interfax on Wednesday that independent lawyer Luis García del Río would represent the Spanish company. Argentina’s national and provincial governments took most of the remaining boardroom seats, with one seat for YPF workers, and three other independents.
“The view at Repsol’s annual general meeting last week was that this consummates the illegal expropriation of YPF. The seat we’ve won on the board will allow us to keep a close eye on YPF’s business, which will be useful during the forthcoming legal battle,” said the Repsol spokesman.
Galuccio claimed the exploitation of just 15% of shale resources in the Vaca Muerta field in the southern Neuquén province would cover Argentina’s energy shortage. Kicillof and Argentina’s Planning Minister Julio de Vido also said their investigation of Repsol showed a “planned disinvestment” in YPF.
A second source close to Repsol, who did not wish to be named, told Interfax that there had been “no material change” between Repsol’s proposed investment plan for YPF and the Argentine company’s strategy. “Repsol proposed investing around $25 billion per year in Argentina’s shale, which YPF has just repeated. There’s nothing new about this plan at all,” he said on Wednesday.
This article was first published by Chris Noon on www.interfaxenergy.com on 6 June. Interfax is a media partner of Shale Gas World Argentina
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