Oleoductos del Valle (Oldelval) will begin construction of the Duplicar Norte pipeline project in November with an initial investment of $380 million, said Ricardo Hösel, chief executive officer, at the Argentina Oil & Gas Expo 2025 in early September.
The project includes construction of a 207-km, 24-in. OD pipeline to increase crude transportation capacity from the Northern Vaca Muerta Hub in Neuquén basin to Oldelval’s main pumping station in Allen, Río Negro.
Hösel said the agreement was finalized July 4 and that the company has “signed contracts with clients, purchased the pipes, and will start works in November.” Early commissioning is scheduled for December 2026, with full startup in March 2027, he said.
The first stage envisages transport of 220,000 b/d. The pipeline is expected to be expandable to 300,000 b/d in stage two, and up to 500,000 b/d in stage three.
Hösel stressed the importance of midstream operational convergence.
“Efficiency means having a single operator. Many pipelines share routes and pumping stations. From a cost perspective, one operator is far more efficient and, most importantly, it also improves crude quality management,” he said.
Höse said crude quality is a critical factor for market access.
“The basin has many crude streams. It is essential to move all molecules in a way that matches Pacific and Atlantic demand. With multiple operators, coordination is much more difficult.”