TotalEnergies, through its affiliate Total Austral, has reached an agreement with YPF to sell its 45% interest in two unconventional oil and gas blocks in Argentina for $500m (€427.67m).
The transaction involves the Rincon La Ceniza and La Escalonada blocks, valued at approximately $10,000 per acre.
The concessions, spanning 51,000 net acres, are located in the prolific Vaca Muerta shale formation within the Neuquén Basin. These blocks are currently undergoing pilot development.
Total Austral's partners in these concessions include Gas y Petroleo de Neuquen with a 10% stake and O&G Developments, a Shell-owned company, holding the remaining 45%.
The completion of this divestment is contingent upon the satisfaction of standard conditions.
TotalEnergies senior vice-president Americas exploration & production Javier Rielo said: “The sale of Rincon La Ceniza and La Escalonada blocks is part of our active portfolio management strategy. TotalEnergies remains fully committed to Argentina, where it operates a large unconventional area of 183,000 nets acres in the Vaca Muerta play, after the divestment of these two blocks, which represented around 20% of our net acreage in that play.
“The company is currently producing gas and condensates from the operated blocks Aguada Pichana Este and San Roque, with a combined production of around 50,000boepd [barrels of oil equivalent per day] in TotalEnergies share in 2024. This transaction allows us to unlock value from part of our portfolio, while focusing on the development of our core assets in the Neuquén Basin and in the offshore of Tierra del Fuego.”
In related news, TotalEnergies is reportedly making progress at its $20bn liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in northern Mozambique.
Preliminary site preparations have begun, marking a significant step towards the project's resumption.
It had been suspended since 2021 due to escalating militant attacks in the region, which have been linked to the Islamic State.
As of early July 2025, TotalEnergies had issued a notice to its contractors to proceed with site preparations, signalling the recommencement of work on the LNG project.
