Argentina's YPF targets $1 bln in financing in 2023
BENGALURU, Feb 6 (Reuters) - Argentina's state-run energy company YPF aims to raise about $1 billion in financing this year, returning to debt markets to fund development of the Vaca Muerta shale region, the company's chairman told Reuters on Monday.
The debt operation would be the first since YPF restructured some $2.1 billion with creditors in 2021.
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"We did not need (external financing) last year. We actually reduced our debt," Chairman Pablo Gonzalez said on the sidelines of the India Energy Week conference. "In a first round (of financing) in Argentina, we already secured $300 million" for investment.
The money is expected to fund about 20% of a $5 billion investment plan for this year, primarily focused on boosting oil and gas output at Vaca Muerta, he added.
YPF's production goal for this year is 550,000-560,000 barrels per day of oil and gas, an increase of about 10% from last year's average.
Another priority for the company in 2023 is to progress on a major liquefied natural gas (LNG) production project with Malaysia's state-owned Petronas and a pipeline to transport the fuel, as demand for gas spikes globally.
A series of technical meetings with Petronas are planned for Feb. 22 in Argentina to discuss the legal terms of the joint LNG project, another step towards a final contract following a preliminary agreement in September, Gonzalez added.
The YPF-Petronas project calls for an initial investment of around $10 billion, which the companies said would allow output of 5 million tonnes of LNG during the first year of operation, but they did not specify when the plant is expected to come online.
(Reporting by Nidhi Verma and Shariq Khan; Editing by Sharon Singleton)