MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Repsol-YPF optimistic about finding oil in Islas Malvinas waters

Antonio Brufau, CEO of Spain’s leading oil and Gas Corporation

Spanish oil and gas company Repsol-YPF praised its Argentine YPF associates and said he was hopeful that “soon” the company “would discover hydrocarbons in the Islas Malvinas waters”, as has happened in Brazil.

“The incorporation of the Petersen Group to Repsol-YPF in Argentina has been very successful because it gave a very locally oriented company a global outlook, plus helping to consolidate an international company which was not integrated”, said Repsol CEO Antonio Brufau in Buenos Aires where he was honoured by the local Argentine-Spanish Chamber of Commerce.

“We hope more Argentine capitals join so we can further improve the company, which goes beyond the idea of having an YPF which is totally Argentine”, added Brufau addressing an audience that included most of the Argentine political, business and financial establishments.

However Brufau said he was not proud with what the company was doing in energy terms since “we are only actually catering to the automobile industry”.

In spite of repeated successes in Brazil and optimism about finding oil in the Malvinas waters “we are selling fuel in Argentina at a cheaper price than mineral water”.

Oil prices in Argentina have been frozen for several years now or only slightly adjusted which has created a significant investment deficit in oil and gas exploration while the country gobbles its proven reserves that are down to 3 to 5 years of current consumption.

Brufau said that a new energy production model is needed because by 2030 emerging countries will be consuming 40% more energy as millions of more vehicles are incorporated, while “we still have in the world 2.5 billion people with no access to electricity and will be demanding a fair deal, all of which will have an impact on global warming”.

“The energy sector must change its focus, act more intelligently in the search for alternative sources be it in the sea or on land, because in the last hundred years we’ve consumed most of the fossil reserves accumulated during millions of years”, underlined the Spanish entrepreneur.

“In Repsol and YPF we are working into new energy sources, besides oil and gas, such as bio-technology, bio-diesel, wind energy at sea and on earth, but most important creating awareness that as producers and consumers, we must be more responsible and target a sustainable and equitable world”.