LatinNews Daily - 30 August 2023

* The Central American development bank (BCIE) has approved a US$185m loan to expand the transportation capacity of Argentina’s Néstor Kirchner gas pipeline, which was inaugurated in July. According to the BCIE, the loan will fund the construction of four turbo-compressors along the pipeline. These include two additional compressors for the Tratayén (Neuquén province) and Salliqueló (Buenos Aires province) segments, and two new ones near Chacharramendi (La Pampa). These additions aim to increase the pipeline’s transportation capacity by 9.5m cubic metres per day. Total investment in the project amounts to some US$200m. According to Agustín Gerez, the president of Argentina’s state power company Energía Argentina (Enarsa), the loan provides significant support for the expansion of the gas pipeline and “shows that with planning, effort and commitment Argentina can undertake fundamental works to enhance the value of gas from Vaca Muerta”, in reference to the shale oil and gas fields in Patagonia.