The Argentine government has kicked off the reversal of its Northern Gas Pipeline in Córdoba, Argentina, with the inauguration of a 123 km-long gas pipeline between La Carlota and Tío Pujio to connect the Central-West and North gas pipelines. The US$740m project was developed by Energía Argentina, supplying 7 Argentinean provinces: Córdoba, Salta, Jujuy, Santiago del Estero, Catamarca, La Rioja and Tucumán. It allows the gas-flow direction from the Vaca Muerta field to be reversed, transporting up to 5 mcm/d (with the possibility to increase to 9 mcm/d in a second phase). The project is expected to transport 10% of the gas produced by Argentina, covering the demand of the central and northern regions and replacing gas imported from Bolivia. The construction works will be completed in the first half of 2025 with the automation of four existing compressor plants (Lumbrera, Lavalle, Dean Funes and Ferreyra).
The project is expected to help increase Argentina’s energy security by reducing dependence on imports and fluctuations in gas supply from neighbouring countries and encouraging the efficient use of domestic resources. The country has imported gas (by pipe from Bolivia) and LNG since 2009, with imports have decreasing since 2022 (-38% in 2022 and -19% in 2023), reaching 4.6 bcm in 2023.