The Argentine government awarded ENI Argentina Exploración y Explotación; Tecpetrol, and MEMPLO, a subsidiary from Japan's Mitsui hydrocarbons licenses to explore an offshore area. MLO/124 in the so-called West Malvinas basin.
Argentina awarded permits to begin hydrocarbon exploration in 18 areas off the coast of the Buenos Aires province, the Austral basin and the Malvinas West basin, which neighbors with the Falkland Islands, the insular territory claimed by Argentina.
Argentina plans to launch a delayed offshore licensing round in October as it seeks to explore a large frontier region in the South Atlantic for potential oil and natural gas production growth in the future. This was announced to oil executives in Houston by Argentina's energy secretary Javier Iguacel.