When Alberto Fernandez, Argentina’s new left-leaning president, entered into office December 10 the international markets were anxious to see whether the post-Macri era would result in an energy policy reversal, a switch back to the traditional Peronist line. Endowed with the second-largest shale gas and fourth-largest shale oil resources in the world, Argentina has struggled to realize the full potential of its non-conventional deposits. Without a doubt, 10 years ago there was no Vaca Muerta production whatsoever and yes, Argentina leads Latin America in shale production and shale has allowed it to reverse a seemingly terminal trend of output decline, yet initial plans were much more ambitious than that. Early indications from the Fernandez government suggest an unexpectedly business-friendly oil and gas policy, cognizant that Vaca Muerta might be Argentina’s way out of its financial quagmire. Vaca Muerta shale, already producing more than 100kbpd of oil, is steadily replacing […]