Continental Resources, Oklahoma City, is marking its first operational role outside the US with an agreement to acquire a 90% operating stake in the Los Toldos II Oeste block in Argentina’s Vaca Muerta. The privately held company has started the regulatory process to register its local subsidiary, Continental Resources Argentina SAU, as part of its entry into Argentina.
The deal, made with Pluspetrol, was disclosed through a filing with Argentina’s National Securities Commission (CNV) and local media.
Gas y Petróleo del Neuquén (GyP), the provincial energy company, would hold the remaining 10%.
The block was previously operated by Pluspetrol, which had acquired Los Toldos through its deal to acquire ExxonMobil’s Argentine assets.
While financial terms were not disclosed, Pluspetrol confirmed that the transaction remains subject to customary conditions precedent, including regulatory approval from the province of Neuquén, which oversees upstream concession rights.
Continental’s arrival comes as President Javier Milei's administration seeks to attract US operators to accelerate unconventional development. Argentina’s Economy Minister Luis Caputo praised the deal, calling it “a concrete signal of confidence” in the country’s macroeconomic stabilization efforts and its strategy to scale up Vaca Muerta.
High-potential, early-stage block
Los Toldos II Oeste lies within Vaca Muerta’s liquids-rich fairway in the northwestern sector of the basin. The block spans 77.7 sq km and sits in an oil window with attractive thickness, pressure, and rock quality, though still far from the industrial development levels of core blocks.
To date, the block has seen only three wells drilled, underscoring its early-stage nature and contrasting with mature areas such as Loma Campana (YPF–Chevron) and Bajada del Palo (Vista), where activity follows full factory-drilling models.
Analysts expect Continental Resources to deploy elements of its US playbook:
- extended-reach horizontals.
- high-intensity frac designs.
- pad drilling.
- sequential development strategies aimed at lowering costs and stabilizing productivity curves.
If the deal is approved, Continental Resources would be required to submit a development program, including drilling commitments, pilot phases, and eventually, full-scale development.
