A regime change in Venezuela may pose a challenge for the more than USD 20bn in hydrocarbon investments planned for Argentina’s the Vaca Muerta oil area, three industry sources said.

The case for ramping up investments in 2026 was already difficult, amid low international oil prices, the sources stated.

“It may be too premature to say, but Argentina probably has a new competitor for capital in Latin America,” said the first source.  Logistically, Venezuela “has an advantage in luring investments over Argentina’s Vaca Muerta shale area, due to its proximity to the US,” said the source. Moreover, if the Venezuelan production stabilizes and manages to rebound, it will put additional pressure to international crude prices, said the source.