Andes Energia (LON:AEN) aims to tie-up with a major industry partner and start a “massive development” in Argentina’s Vaca Muerta shale.
The junior oil and gas firm is the only UK listed vehicle with exposure to the Vaca Muerta, believed to be the world’s third largest shale play and significantly the only one producing oil outside of the United States.
Investments by national oil company YPF as well as Chevron and Exxon have driven the initial development of the shale play.
And Andes, as an independent, is well placed with a significant foothold in the fast-moving play. It has 250,000 acres in the Vaca Muerta and has so far made four discoveries.
A new corporate presentation unveiled this morning reveals the forward plan is to bring in a development partner for the projects by 2017.
The company, which also has conventional assets in Argentina and Colombia, during the same time frame aims to grow production to over 10,000 barrels per day from the 3,300 bopd recorded for 2014.
Thus far Andes has more than 70 conventional wells, and 4 unconventional wells. It aims to increase the rate of drilling to above 100 wells per year by 2017.
A snapshot of the company, subsequent to the recent acquisition of Colombia group InterOil, reveals some 26mln barrels of proved and probable (2P) reserves and some 659mln barrels oil equivalent resources which are mostly attributable to the Vaca Muerta assets.
The land-holding is very significant, with a total of 7mln acres across 2 countries and 6 different geological basins.
* The new corporate presentation can be read in full here