據石油世界期刊9月8日報道，阿根廷政府支持的能源公司雷普索爾（YPF）計劃在未來6個月內在該國瓦卡穆爾塔地區（Vaca Muerta）地區重新部署46臺鉆機，以幫助該國最大的頁巖區塊恢復油氣產量。在疫情期間，該區塊的油氣產量大幅下降。

9月2日，內烏肯(Neuquen)州長奧馬爾·古鐵雷斯(Omar Gutierrez)在黑河（Rio Negro）報紙上刊登的一個能源研討會中表示，有一個連續的計劃，以便公司所有在疫情之前運行的鉆機重新合并。”“我們的想法是，這46臺鉆機將在明年2月之前投入運營。”

古鐵雷斯表示，YPF首席執行官塞爾吉奧·阿夫弗蒂尼在會議上向他介紹了這些計劃。 當被問及鉆機時，YPF的新聞媒體拒絕置評。

如果執行該計劃，該國最大的油氣生產商YPF將隨著瓦卡·穆爾塔的發展而向前邁進，與此同時，雪佛龍和殼牌等其他公司在4月和5月經濟封鎖期間的活動急劇下降， 被迫停產后，也重新啟動計劃。

從今年3月20日開始的封鎖使當地石油需求減少了一半以上，降至每日20萬桶，并阻止了一些出于健康考慮的油田工作。但逐步放松的封鎖(已延長至9月20日)重新點燃了需求，鼓勵生產商重新開始鉆井和完井。根據國家統計機構Indec的數據顯示，煉油廠的利用率從4月份46.2%的低點回升至6月份的67.3%，但仍低于疫情前80%的水平。

郝芬 譯自 石油世界期刊

原文如下：

YPF to redeploy rigs in Vaca Muerta on export potential

Argentina's state-backed energy company YPF plans to redeploy 46 rigs in the Vaca Muerta region over the next six months, helping to revive oil and natural gas output from the country's biggest shale play after a plunge in activity during the coronavirus pandemic.

"There is a sequential plan so that all of the company's drilling rigs in operation before the pandemic are reincorporated," Neuquen Governor Omar Gutierrez said Sept. 2 in an energy seminar put on by Rio Negro newspaper. "The idea is that the 46 rigs will be operating by next February."

Gutierrez said YPF CEO Sergio Affronti told him about the plans in a meeting. A press source at YPF declined to comment when asked about the rigs.

If the plan is carried out, YPF, the country's biggest oil and gas producer, would be moving forward with the development of Vaca Muerta as other companies in the play, like Chevron and Shell, also dust off plans after a plunge in activity during a lockdown of the economy forced most to shut-in production in April and May.

The lockdown, which started March 20, cut local oil demand by more than half to as low as 200,000 b/d and prevented some field work on health concerns. But a gradual easing of the lockdown — it has been extended to September 20 — has rekindled demand, encouraging producers to start drilling and completing wells again. The refinery utilization rate recovered to 67.3% in June from a low of 46.2% in April, but is still shy of the pre-pandemic levels of 80%, according to the state statistics agency Indec.