TGS Wins $700 Million Contract to Expand Argentina’s Vaca Muerta Gas Pipeline

Argentina has awarded TGS a $700 million contract to expand the Perito Moreno gas pipeline from the Vaca Muerta formation to Buenos Aires.

(Reuters) — Argentina's government has awarded the expansion of the Perito Moreno gas pipeline, from the Vaca Muerta formation in western Argentina to Buenos Aires, to Transportadora Gas del Sur (TGS), the energy secretariat said on Oct. 20.

The project, with a $700 million investment, is set to increase the pipeline's capacity from 21 to 35 million cubic meters per day and spur additional drilling of 20 new wells in Vaca Muerta.

In June 2024, TGS had proposed a $500 million investment to upgrade the same pipeline network through new compressor plants and infrastructure, pending government approval. At the time, CEO Oscar Sardi said the expansion would help meet Argentina’s peak gas demand and open export opportunities to Chile, Bolivia and Brazil.

The earlier plan aimed to increase capacity from 21 MMcm/d to 35 MMcm/d, aligning with Argentina’s broader push to expand midstream infrastructure in the Neuquén province, home to the Vaca Muerta shale formation. The recent contract award formalizes those expansion plans under direct government partnership.