MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Petrobras plans to drill offshore Mar del Plata.

Petrobras, the Brazilian government owned oil company will be investing 1,5 billion US dollars searching for hydrocarbons offshore Mar del Plata in Argentina.

"We're planning to explore in the Argentine Sea in association with Enarsa (Argentina's recently government created energy corporation), and at the moment we're in the final stages of the negotiation", revealed Alberto Guimaraes Petrobras Energy CEO.

Although no dates were revealed Mr. Guimaraes said he expects to announce the timetable sometime in the second half of the year. Mr. Guimaraes made the announcement during the inauguration of a Petrobras liquid fertilizer plant in Campana which demanded a 15 million US dollars investment.

President Nestor Kirchner, Buenos Aires province governor Felipe Solá plus other top officials from the Argentine government were present at the ceremony.

In a short speech President Kirchner praised Petrobras "strong commitment" with Argentina and admitted that at the beginning of his term of office he had a "strong argument" with the Brazilian company regarding its role in the development of Argentina's resources.

As to the impending gas shortage forecasted by Argentine energy distributors, since the Bolivian parliament has still to vote on the promised surplus provision, the Argentine press reports that Energy Secretary Daniel Cameron revealed that president Kirchner would be signing several decrees for the expansion of several gas pipelines in the south, east and north of the country as well as "to increase production of our existing deposits".

These actions together with those planned for 2006, "which are slightly delayed" will enable the "additional injection of five million cubic metres in 2005 and eight to ten million next year, ensuring the situation is under control".