OSLO/BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) -Norwegian oil and gas firm Equinor is looking to sell its onshore assets in Argentina’s Vaca Muerta region, the Mas Energia online publication reported, citing unnamed sources.
Equinor has hired Bank of America to conduct the sale of its 30% stake in the Bandurria Sur licence and 50% in Bajo del Toro Norte, though no decision has yet been made on a divestment, the report said.
The Norwegian company does not plan to sell its stakes in offshore licences in Argentina, Mas Energia added.
An Equinor spokesperson declined to comment on the report.
Argentina’s state-owned oil company YPF, which has right of first refusal, holds a 40% stake in Bandurria Sur and 50% in Bajo del Toro Norte.
“Everything indicates that Badurria is an option, but there’s nothing concrete yet,” a YPF source said, asking not to be named because they weren’t authorized to comment.
Vaca Muerta, Spanish for “Dead Cow”, holds the world’s second-largest shale gas reserves and fourth-largest shale oil reserves.
Bandurria Sur is producing about 70,000 barrels of oil equivalent while Bajo del Toro Norte has yet to be developed.
Equinor’s stakes in the two licences could be worth about $1.3 billion, broker Jefferies said, citing Wood Mackenzie estimates.
Shell has a 30% stake in Bandurria Sur.
(Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis in Oslo and Eliana Raszewski in Buenos AiresEditing by Alexander Villegas, David Goodman and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
