In Bahía Blanca, the plan includes building a new fractionation plant with an annual capacity of 2.7 million tonnes, equivalent to processing approximately 90,000 barrels per day of liquids including propane, butane, and heavier hydrocarbons (C3, C4, C5+). Complementing this, a specialized maritime terminal will be established in Puerto Galván featuring storage tanks—100,000 cubic meters for propane and 70,000 cubic meters for butane—alongside refrigerated loading arms to facilitate efficient export operations.
The project is expected to handle about 3 million tonnes per year, accounting for over 15% of the annual cargo throughput at the Ingeniero White–Puerto Galván port area. Beyond infrastructure, the investment will span four provinces—Neuquén, Río Negro, La Pampa, and Buenos Aires—over an estimated 45-month construction period. This will create approximately 4,000 direct jobs and 15,000 indirect employment opportunities.
Government representatives, including Economy Minister Luis Caputo, emphasized the investment’s importance for Argentina’s economic development. Marcelo Mindlin, a major TGS shareholder and president of Pampa Energía, described it as the country’s largest NGL processing development in 25 years. The complex is forecasted to generate over $2 billion in annual exports, reinforcing Argentina’s role as a key regional energy supplier and enhancing the logistical and industrial capabilities of Bahía Blanca as the primary export node for Vaca Muerta-derived hydrocarbons.
This article was curated and published as part of our South American energy market coverage.
