At the same time, the progress of the Vaca Muerta Southern Oil Pipeline (VMOS) will be key to boosting oil shipments to the Argentine Sea and expanding export capacity in the coming years.
Vaca Muerta could reach the highest level of energy surplus in 35 years and would consolidate the country as an exporting powerhouse
At the same time, the progress of the Vaca Muerta Southern Oil Pipeline (VMOS) will be key to boosting oil shipments to the Argentine Sea and expanding export capacity in the coming years.
The Argentine energy transformation is accelerating under President Javier Milei's administration, and Vaca Muerta is emerging as the driving force behind a historic change. According to a report by the Rosario Stock Exchange (BCR), 2025 will mark the highest oil production of the century and an unprecedented record in the history of national gas, consolidating Argentina as a major energy player in the international market.
The data speak for themselves: between January and July of this year, oil production grew by 11% and gas production by 4% compared to 2024. "The rise of Vaca Muerta has brought with it a sharp increase in unconventional gas and oil production," emphasized researchers Guido D'Angelo and Emilce Terré, authors of the report.
The structural change is evident. While in 2015 unconventional oil accounted for less than 5% of the national total and in 2020 did not exceed 25%, so far in 2025 it already constitutes 60% of production. BCR projects that this year will reach "the highest oil production of the century, a peak since 1998 and the third highest ever recorded." At the same time, gas production is expected to be "the highest in Argentine history in 2025."
The production leap is not happening in a vacuum: new energy transportation projects and the opening of regional markets are accompanying the growth. The Perito Moreno Gas Pipeline (formerly GPNK) will allow for deeper supply to the province of Buenos Aires and the Central Region, while the reversal of the Northern Gas Pipeline will guarantee supply to Córdoba, Tucumán, La Rioja, Catamarca, Santiago del Estero, Salta, and Jujuy, later opening the door to exports to Bolivia and Brazil.
The decline in Bolivia's gas production is creating a window of opportunity. "The marked decline in Bolivian production is opening markets and opportunities to continue deepening Argentine energy exports to the region in the medium term," BCR emphasized.
The results are already visible in the macroeconomy: Argentina's energy balance posted its largest surplus in 35 years in 2025. The report detailed that energy exports increased by 11% in the first half of the year compared to last year, while imports fell by more than 23% year-on-year. The most striking figure: gas imports plummeted by 46% in the first half of the year.
This performance has consolidated the oil and petrochemical complex as the country's second-largest exporter. Currently, oil and gas account for more than 13% of Argentine exports, compared to 6% in 2020 and just 3.7% in 2015. Meanwhile, energy reduced its share of imports to less than 5% in 2025, the lowest level in 21 years, after having reached nearly 16% in 2022.