Harbour Energy said in a statement it had signed a participation agreement with PAE and Golar LNG to acquire a 15 percent interest in Southern Energy, a company which is planning to develop the FLNG project in Argentina.
The company did not provide financial details of the deal.
The FLNG project involves deploying Golar LNG’s floating liquefaction vessel, Hilli, in the San Matías Gulf, Río Negro province, alongside the construction of supporting infrastructure.
Also, the vessel will have a production capacity of 2.45 million tons per year (mtpa) of LNG, equivalent to 11.5 million cubic meters or 0.4 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day.
“It is anticipated that the upstream partners in Southern Energy will supply the natural gas for the FLNG project, enabling Harbour’s Vaca Muerta natural gas to access global LNG export markets and international natural gas prices,” Harbour Energy said.
In addition, Harbour’s participation in Southern Energy “provides the company with the opportunity to work with its partners to continue to mature the proposed FLNG project towards a final investment decision and to unlock the full potential of its Vaca Muerta acreage,” the company said.
Pampa Energia, YPF
This announcement comes just days after Argentina’s Pampa Energia said it will hold a 20 percent stake in Southern Energy, the entity established by PAE and Golar to undertake the FLNG project in Argentina, becoming its second-largest shareholder.
With an estimated investment of $2.9 billion over the next 10 years, the FLNG project represents a strategic milestone to monetize Pampa’s Vaca Muerta reserves and position Argentina in the global LNG market.
During the FLNG project’s initial stage, Pampa has committed to supplying up to 3 mcm or over 100 mcf of natural gas per day from its Neuquina basin blocks.
Pampa currently produces an annual average of over 13 mcm or 0.5 bcf per day, with peaks of 17 mcm or 0.6 bcf per day in winter in the basin.
In addition to Pampa, YPF CEO Horacio Marin recently said that Argentina’s state-owned oil and gas company YPF will join the FLNG project developed by Pan American Energy and Golar LNG.
Marin said YPF will join this initiative that “marks a milestone in the energy industry of our country and that represents a big step to be able to carry out our Argentina LNG project, with which we expect to export $15 billion in LNG by 2030.”
Hilli
In July, Golar LNG entered into definitive agreements with PAE for a 20-year deployment of FLNG Hilli, which is currently located offshore Cameroon’s Kribi, in Argentina.
As part of the agreements, Golar will hold a 10 percent stake in Southern Energy.
The FLNG project will monetize Argentine gas, tapping into the vast resources from the Vaca Muerta shale formation in the Neuquen basin, the world’s second-largest shale gas resources.
Golar expects the project to start LNG exports within 2027.
The floating LNG player said in its third-quarter report that PAE issued a reservation notice reserving FLNG Hilli for the project in October 2024.
The project’s definitive contracts are subject to satisfying defined conditions precedent, including an export license, environmental assessment, and FID by PAE.
“Work on the conditions precedent is progressing with their satisfaction and FID is expected within Q1 2025,” Golar said.
Golar said the FLNG project will initially utilize spare capacity in Argentina’s existing pipeline network.
Work to construct a dedicated pipeline connecting the FLNG terminal location directly to the Vaca Muerta shale formation is also being pursued.
“This could support a multi-FLNG vessel project in Argentina, including opportunities for our MKII FLNG(s),” Golar said.
