Shell Weighs Potential Exit from Argentina's Vaca Muerta Shale Assets

Shell's Strategic Considerations in Vaca Muerta

By Shariq Khan

Background on Shell's Involvement

NEW YORK, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Oil major Shell is considering a sale of its assets in Argentina's Vaca Muerta shale play and has approached potential buyers in recent weeks to gauge their interest, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Market Dynamics and Challenges

Shell is open to selling some or all of its interests in the highly sought shale oil and gas play, part of Argentina's Neuquen basin, two of the sources said. The assets are likely to be valued in the billions of dollars, they said, adding that a precise estimate was difficult because some of the assets are undeveloped and commodity prices are volatile.

Potential Buyers and Valuation

The sources, who were not authorized to speak on the record, cautioned that a sale is not guaranteed, and Shell could still choose to hold the assets. Shell declined to comment. 

A full sale would mark a surprise exit by one of the Vaca Muerta's earliest backers, just as interest in the region is growing due to concerns that other large shale fields, including the top-producing Permian basin of Texas and New Mexico, have peaked. A sale would follow Shell's recent decision to exit Argentina LNG, after Argentina's state oil firm YPF halved the project's planned capacity.

Shell entered Vaca Muerta in 2012 and has since grown its footprint to four majority-owned and operated license blocks, and minority stakes in three other blocks operated by YPF. Shell's production from Argentina averaged 15,610 barrels per day in 2024, according to its latest annual report.

Shell has sold a number of assets since company veteran Wael Sawan was appointed CEO in 2023 and tasked with improving performance after bets on a pivot from oil to renewables failed to pay off.

Reuters earlier this week reported that Shell is planning to exit Syria's al-Omar oilfield. Last week, Reuters reported that the oil major is exploring sale options for its LNG Canada stake. 

ONE OF THE 'MOST COMPELLING' SHALE PLAYS

The Vaca Muerta is seeing strong interest from inventory-hungry producers exposed to dwindling potential in North America, said Andy McConn, director of Enverus Intelligence Research.

In contrast to the Permian, which has been drilled extensively since the U.S. shale boom began there about two decades ago, only about 8% of the Vaca Muerta is under development. The play is estimated to hold the world's second-largest shale gas and fourth-largest shale oil resources, according to U.S. government statistics.

U.S. shale pioneer Harold Hamm's Continental Resources earlier this month acquired minority stakes in four Vaca Muerta blocks from Pan American Energy, calling the region "one of the most compelling shale plays in the world."

While output from the Vaca Muerta has grown rapidly in recent years, declining oil prices, high production costs and transportation bottlenecks have threatened to slow the growth. Compared to the Permian, costs to drill a well in the Vaca Muerta are about 35% higher, Mark Nelson, vice chairman of U.S. oil company Chevron said in November.

Still, Shell's assets in the region are estimated to break even at Brent oil prices below $50, McConn said. "Such economics and scale screen favorably versus other global shale assets," he said.

(Reporting by Shariq Khan in New York and Shadia Nasralla in London; Editing by Nia Williams)