Argentina to reduce import tarrifs

Argentina plans to reduce import tariffs on used oil equipment, Minister of Energy and Mining Juan José Aranguren told reporters on Tuesday.

Argentina will cut import tariffs on used E&P equipment to 7-8% in the coming days, the minister said. The government believes that decreased rates, which currently stand at 27%, will help lower operational costs and spur investment in its promising shale formation, Vaca Muerta.

Aranguren said he expects operators will be able to make use of equipment once crucial to the USA’s shale revolution. “In the United States, because of the boom in unconventional exploitation, after five or six years, these kinds of equipment can be replaced by more efficient equipment, but they are available and we can use them,” the energy minister commented.

Argentina sees Vaca Muerta’s extensive, untapped oilfields a key part of its economic revival. Minister Aranguren, who was in Tokyo for a forum on Japanese-Argentine business ties last week, said in an interview that he expects investments in the play to total around USD 3.5 billion-4 billion this year, reaching USD 15 billion-20 billion annually by 2019.