The Brazilian government's goal is to import Argentine gas as soon as possible and at the lowest cost, so Bolivian gas pipelines are the best option.
Brazilian Minister of Mines and Energy Alexandre Silveira announced that he signed a memorandum of understanding with his Argentine counterpart Luis Caputo to import gas from the Vaca Muerta reserves in northern Argentina through Bolivian gas pipelines.
According to a note from the Brazilian Ministry of Mines and Energy, five routes are planned to be used to transport Argentine gas to the Brazilian market.
The fastest option and the main route is the Brazil-Bolivia Gas Pipeline (Gasbol) infrastructure, which has a transport capacity of up to 30 million cubic meters of gas per day.
GAS
The document states that the objective is to “allow the export of Argentine gas in the shortest time or at the lowest possible cost.”
In addition to the Bolivian gas pipelines, the Brazilian government plans to build infrastructure to transport gas through Paraguay, specifically in the Chaco region.
Similarly, a route is planned to transport gas from Argentina to Uruguay and then to Brazil via Rio Grande do Sul. Another option is to produce liquefied natural gas (LNG), but that will mean higher investment costs.
Since it became known that Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB) would stop exporting gas to Argentina after almost 20 years, the possibility of renting gas pipelines was opened so that the Argentine surplus could be exported to Brazilian markets where demand is quite high and prices are “more competitive.”
However, in the meeting between Caputo and Silveira, it was not defined how much income Gasbol will receive from the use of its infrastructure.
The signed memorandum provides for shipments to begin in 2025 with 2 million cubic meters per day and to reach 30 million cubic meters per day in five years.
The Brazilian government will therefore try to open the five routes to import all Argentine gas and meet domestic demand. However, for the moment, the Bolivian gas pipeline is the best option, pending the government setting the price for leasing the infrastructure.
