The state-owned company Energía Argentina (Enarsa) finalized this Monday the opening of envelope number 2 of line 2 for the construction of the President Néstor Kirchner Gas Pipeline, considered the most important infrastructure work of the last 40 years, which will allow the transport of gas conventional generated in the area of Vaca Muerta, in Neuquén, with the main centers of consumption in the country.
Line 2 corresponds to the construction of 220 kilometers of pipeline which will extend between kilometer 220 of the trace in La Pampa to kilometer 440 in the same province.
On Sunday, after the opening of offers carried out last Thursday, July 21 and after subsequent evaluation, Line 1 of the work was awarded to the Techint-Sacde joint venture and Line 5 to Esuco.
Line 1 corresponds to the construction of 220 kilometers of pipeline that extend between the connection to the TGS system -at the Treatment Plant- up to kilometer 220 of the gas pipeline route, in the province of La Pampa.
While, line 5 has to do with the work of the Mars 100 Compressor Plant at the head of the Mercedes-Cardales Gas Pipelinein the province of Buenos Aires.
The act carried out this Monday was led by the president of Energía Argentina, Agustín Gerez and the deputy general manager of the state firm, Gastón Leydet. The offers technically admitted for line 2 were those presented by the Transitory Union of Companies (UTE) Techint-Sacde and that of the firm BTU SA
“We are advancing with great effort and commitment, enabling weekends as business days, to complete the bidding process for the President Néstor Kirchner Gas Pipeline, start its construction and have it operational before next winter, as planned”, Gerez said during the opening of offers. “This project is strategic because it will definitively transform our country and will lead it towards energy sovereignty,” Gerez added.
The directors of Energía Argentina, Oscar Cretini, Víctor Bronstein, Mariano Barrera and Mario Metaza were present at the event.
On the other hand, Energía Argentina reported that this Sunday, after the opening of offers made last Thursday, July 21 and after subsequent evaluation, line 1 was awarded to the Techint-Sacde joint venture and line 5 to Esuco.
In line 1, which corresponds to a 220-kilometre stretch of pipeline between the connection to the TGS system at the Treatment Plant of Treatment up to kilometer 220 of the gas pipeline route, in La Pampa, Techint-Sacde -the winning joint venture- submitted a final offer of $61,227,300,000.
In line 5, corresponding to the Mars 100 Compression Plant at the head of the Mercedes-Cardales gas pipeline in the province of Buenos Aires, Esuco SA offered $10,296,975,418.62.
“I will not tire of repeating that this project is transformative for our country”emphasized Gerez, while stressing the importance of speeding up the bidding process so that “the companies that are chosen can work as soon as possible.”
In last Thursday’s tender, Gerez stated that “with a lot of dedication, effort and commitment we are carrying out the final part of the bidding process for this important work, this time opening the first lines, which we will award in the coming days while we finish to open the remaining ones, completing this process during August, as planned”.
He also remarked that the Néstor Kirchner Gas Pipeline “is the great work of transformation for the future of our country because it will allow us to access more energy at competitive prices, promoting production and work, as well as substituting gas imports and exporting to the region and the world.”
On July 18, Enarsa carried out the opening of envelopes with offers for the acquisition of valves for the Presidente Néstor Kirchner Gas Pipeline and its complementary works corresponding to Stage I.
previously, andOn July 8, envelope 1 of the engineering bids was opened.provision of equipment, materials and the construction of the Presidente Néstor Kirchner Gas Pipeline, and on June 16 the contract was signed with the SIAT company for the provision of 36 and 30-inch pipes.
The Presidente Néstor Kirchner Gas Pipeline, which is part of the Transport.Ar Program, It will have an extension of 573 kilometers between the Neuquén town of Treatyén and Salliqueló.in the west of the province of Buenos Aires, crossing Río Negro and La Pampa.
The project also includes complementary works such as the Mercedes-Cardales gas pipeline and the Neuba II gas pipeline loop, thus totaling 680 kilometers of pipes in Stage I.
This infrastructure work will allow a 25% expansion of the capacity of the Argentine natural gas transportation system and it will be essential for the development of production in Vaca Muerta.
According to official sources, by the winter of 2023, before the execution of the compression works planned for this segment, the gas pipeline will already provide 11,000,000 m3/day of new capacity.
The project also contemplates a second stage, with an extension of 467 kilometers, which will allow natural gas to reach the town of San Jerónimo, in the south of the province of Santa Feadding another 17 million m3/day and opening the possibility of supplying large urban areas and industries in the center and north of the country, as well as the opportunity to export surpluses to Brazil.
