Leaders from the Americas will attend this week’s Summit in Los Angeles to discuss ways to build a sustainable future. One of the questions hanging at the conference: Is there a place for oil and gas in the future?
Argentina, like many other middle-income countries, seems to want high fossil fuel reserves.
In recent years the country has departed Plans to significantly expand renewable energy infrastructure..With the help of China, it’s recently Build the largest solar power plant in South America.. But for now, Argentina is anxious for cash. So it utilizes something the world is ready to pay a lot of money: oil and gas.
This is the result of two major global crises. The pandemic left deep care for some countries while the war in Ukraine caused the world’s oil and gas prices to skyrocket. For Argentina and many other Latin American countries, harnessing the world’s energy needs is an unexpected opportunity for a long-awaited break.
Argentina’s oil production 14% increase in first quarter This year’s best pace in over 10 years. Shale gas production increased by more than 60% over the same period.
Currently, national leaders want to speed up the development of the Vaca Muerta project in Patagonia, one of the world’s largest shale gas deposits.
Argentina has older and bigger debt than most of the time. However, much of its output comes from shale projects and can be scaled up quickly, making it a good place to take advantage of this moment. In countries with offshore oil and gas reserves and costly mining, it is not easy to make long-term plans based on recent price increases.
Still, Argentina is not the only country in the region to capture that moment.
The most striking example is Venezuela. With abundant oil reserves, Western sanctions have significantly separated it from large overseas markets. But over the weekend, there was news that the United States had a green light on two European companies. Started shipping small amounts of oil from Venezuela to Europe.. (Venezuela was not invited to the summit.)
Brazil and Guyana, which have invested in deep-sea oil and gas projects, are expanding production.And peru Export of liquefied natural gas to Europe Talking to Take advantage of the Amazon rainforest oil fields..
All this is in the context of a clear warning from the International Energy Agency.Last year, the organization said it could be No development of new fossil fuels If the world limits global temperature rise to less than 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of this century. Exceeding that threshold greatly increases the risk of global warming, including worsening floods, droughts, wildfires, and the collapse of ecosystems.
That moment is a nuisance for Latin American leaders who want to show that they are taking climate change seriously in Los Angeles. Indeed, the theme of the Summit of the Americas is “building a sustainable, resilient and equitable future.”
I asked Argentine President’s adviser on energy policy, Ariel Cogan, if there is a contradiction between a sustainable future and pulling more fossil fuels out of the ground. He said Argentina contributed less than 1% of world emissions and was not asked to make strict choices when developed countries were not participating in climate change issues.
“The economic reality of developed countries is not in line with this goal,” he said. “Argentina has no dilemma. This is a problem for the world’s great powers.”
According to Kogan, Argentina’s radical energy conversion plan had to be put on hold. Increasing the production of solar and wind energy would “mean importing this equipment, which the country does not have the resources to do,” he said.
The current situation in Argentina symbolizes that the pressure from climate activists to keep fossil fuels underground is not as great as the pressure imposed by the challenge of fully developing a low- and middle-income economy. Especially when there is a shortage of funds for green investment.
Daniel Dreisen, a former director of energy planning in Argentina, said he could not imagine a future in which countries like Argentina would leave their reserves intact. He said the proportion of renewable energy in the Argentine energy matrix is likely to increase, but that does not absolutely mean low fossil fuel production.
“Everyone wants to change the system,” he said. “The question is how fast and how much does it cost?”
Missing reporter: British journalists and Brazilian experts have disappeared in remote areas of the Amazon. Experts have been under many threats.
Oil price “bad choices only”: President Biden’s trip to Saudi Arabia is unlikely to reduce oil and gas costs, and it is not clear if he will do anything else.
New Zealand Biodiversity Conservation: A few years ago, the country vowed to get rid of most non-native predators. Now some people are asking if that goal is feasible.
From outside the Times
Before going: NIMBY’s Twilight
Suburban homeowners like Susan Kirsh are often accused of exacerbating the country’s housing crisis by opposition to new home developments, especially apartments (“not my backyard”). Today, cities and states across the country are trying to weaken neighborhood activists like Kirsch, a 78-year-old retired teacher in Mill Valley, California. She and her companions haven’t given up easily.
thank you for reading. I’ll be back on Friday.
Somini Sengupta, Claire O’Neill and Douglas Alteen contributed to Climate Forward. You can see and share the website version here.
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