The extension of the cold wave energy consumption skyrocketed and some natural gas distributors Last week they had to cut off the supply considered “interruptible” to almost 200 service stations in the country that supply Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) to vehicles according to a survey carried out Infobae in the private sector. To guarantee supply to residential demand, considered a “priority”, this situation has continued these days and, given the polar wave forecasts for the weekend, it could worsen.
The Government is already talking about “pre-emergency” in the face of what will be historic lows in temperatures and has put the companies in charge of distributing the fluid on notice. In addition, Cammesa went out urgently this week to tender shipments of liquid fuel that will cost about USD 500 million for the Treasuryan expense that was not originally planned.
The area of the country most affected by CNG cuts is the province of Buenos Aires and the Federal capital, since that is where the largest number of stations that supply vehicles with gas equipment are located. In any case, complications were recorded in cities of Tucumán, Santiago del Estero, Catamarca, La Riojaamong others.
Complications occur for users who have “interruptible service” contracts which, unlike “firm” ones, are cheaper but also susceptible to outages. Some industries and other large users are also affected.
Regarding CNG, Camuzzi reported that it has some 132 interrupted users between the Province of Buenos Aires, the vast majority, and Patagonia. From Metrogas They detailed that there are about 30 stations that have this type of contracts. In the case of Gasnor It has about 9 interruptibles. Market sources indicated to this medium that in total there would be about 200 that have problems supplying.
One of the factors that explain this situation in the local market is the delay in the “full” start-up of the Néstor Kirchner Gas Pipeline, which currently operates at half its capacity due to the delays of the previous Government and the brakes of the current management to the items destined for public works.
Two issues are added to this point: local supply with imported LNG vessels and the subsidy policy that the Government decided to support its objective of sustaining the fiscal surplus and saving dollars from the Central Bank. The gas that arrives to the country in ships costs around USD 13 per million BTU while CNG at service stations is sold at USD 4 per million BTU.
The distributors target parkers who prefer to hire “interruptible service” to buy the fluid cheaper. The retailers defend themselves by saying that they cannot buy at three times the price they sell at the pump.
With temperatures believed to hit record lows for the month these days, Infobae He announced today that the Government sent a letter to companies in the gas industry to put them on alert. It is a warning of a strong increase in demand, which is already foreseen, and requires some details for the operation in the coming days.
The letter is dated yesterday, the signature Carlos Alberto Casaresauditor of Enargas, and has a copy of the Secretary of Energy, Eduardo Rodríguez Chirillo. It is aimed at the main gas transporters and distributors in the country: TGN, TGS, Metrogas, Litoral Gas, Naturgy, Gas Nea, Gasnor, Camuzzi Gas Pampeana, Camuzzi Gas del Sur, Distribuidora de Gas del Centro, Distribuidora de Gas Cuyana and Redengas .
In this sense, the letter requests the “identification and quantification of interruptible transport contracts (TI) that may be susceptible to cuts, in order to speed up decision-making in an operational situation in which normal supply is at risk. of natural gas.” Talk about “pre-emergency” status, also. It is a protocol and administrative term, a methodological way of saying “something is happening” and putting the issue at the center of the industry.
This situation raises a question about whether Argentina will have sufficient supply for its energy demand in winter. For example, the project to revert the Northern Gasduct to reverse the gas flow that comes from Bolivia to carry the fluid from Dead cow to Córdoba, Tucumán, La Rioja, Catamarca, Santiago del Estero, Salta and Jujuywill not be fully completed by the beginning of the winter period, as planned in 2023.
This implies the need to import gas so that the north of the country does not suffer shortages, since since July Bolivia, by contract, could cut shipments due to the decline suffered by the neighboring country in its production.
The Government points out that the main current problem in the country’s natural gas supply is that the transportation system is facing a major disinvestment as a result of years of tariff freezes. That is why, they say, the pipelines do not support the gas that demand needs.
