With presidential elections looming next October, international investors eyeing Argentina’s potentially prolific shale gas plays are biding their time. Cristina Kirchner is now well into her last term, marking the end of a government that has heavily regulated the energy industry and imposed economic restrictions that discourage foreign investment. But while anxious for a new administration to take power, investors must realize that some of the important reforms taking place today will set the stage for conditions in the energy sector for years to come.
Argentina’s nascent shale industry represents one of the most promising frontiers for unconventional oil and gas development outside of the US. According to recent studies, the country boasts the second largest shale gas and fourth largest shale oil deposits in the world.
