Vaca Muerta

The Vaca Muerta Formation, commonly known as Vaca Muerta (Spanish for dead cow), is a geologic formation of Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous age, located in the Neuquén Basin in northern Patagonia, Argentina. It is well known as the host rock for major deposits of shale oil and shale gas. The large oil discovery in the Vaca Muerta Formation was made in 2010 by the former Repsol-YPF. The total proven reserves are around 927 million barrels (147.4×10^6 m3), and as of 2014 YPF's production alone was nearly 45,000 barrels per day (7,200 m3/d). In February 2012, Repsol YPF SA raised its estimate of oil reserves to 22.5 billion barrels (3.58×109 m3). The US EIA estimates total recoverable hydrocarbons from this Vaca Muerta Formation to be 16.2 billion barrels (2.58×109 m3) of oil and 308 trillion cubic feet (8.7×10^12 m3) of natural gas, more than even the Neuquén Basin's hydrocarbon-rich Middle Jurassic Los Molles Formation holds. As of 2017, there were almost 500 fracking wells, one of the most fracked sites outside North America, and as of October 2024, there were over 1500 fracking wells. In July 2013, protests were heavily repressed by the police. The huge water consumption of fracking as well as the sand mines interfere with agriculture. In 2018, the Mapuche sued Exxon, French company TotalEnergies and Pan American Energy for "dangerous waste" due to "deficient treatment" close to the town of Añelo as oily sludge residue from fracking was tipped in illegal waste dumps. The formation is also known for its fossils, such as those of marine reptiles.