VMOS begins deployment to build Vaca Muerta's offshore pipeline

Vaca Muerta Oil Sur (VMOS) has begun transporting materials and equipment to build the offshore pipeline that will connect the Punta Colorada Terminal, in Río Negro, with two single point mooring (SPM) buoys installed offshore. The project will be the final stretch of the circuit designed to export oil produced in Neuquén.

Logistics are partly concentrated at the Port of San Antonio Este, where 721 38-inch steel pipes, a modular jack-up platform and the factory vessel Seminole have already arrived. The pipeline will run approximately seven kilometers and will be welded and laid on the seabed through operations coordinated from the vessel.

The pipes were manufactured by domestic companies in Buenos Aires province and shipped from Dock Sud. They feature a three-layer coating and a concrete covering, intended to add weight and protection to keep the structure stable once installed underwater.

The operation will also incorporate a combifloat, a modular platform that will serve as a work base for offshore tasks. The unit can support up to 400 tonnes and will support maritime operations during the preparation, alignment, welding and laying of the pipes.

The pipeline will link the coastal terminal with the SPM buoys, from where the crude will be loaded onto oil tankers bound for international markets. The oil will reach Punta Colorada through VMOS's onshore system, which includes the 437-kilometer pipeline between Allen and the Río Negro terminal, a stretch built by Techint and SACDE.

With the progress of this stage, the project is entering a phase focused on maritime infrastructure. The integration of the onshore pipeline, the offshore pipeline and the SPM buoys aims to expand transport and export capacity for Vaca Muerta's shale oil, while also consolidating Punta Colorada as an outlet point for production bound abroad.

With information from Mejor Energía.