Chevron Proposes $13.8 Billion Investment in El Trapial Over 30 Years
Key Facts
Chevron has proposed developing the El Trapial field in Argentina with a potential investment of $13.8 billion over 30 years under the Large Investment Incentive Regime, known as RIGI. The company said in an interview published by the AOG Patagonia conference that the proposal spans the full 30 years set out by the regime, while its application to join remains under government review. That puts the project within a long-term bet on shale oil production in Vaca Muerta, but ties its execution to completion of the government review. Chevron says transferring and locally adapting best practices from its operations in the Permian Basin and other regions is part of its approach. It is also focused on narrowing the cost gap by improving logistics, services, infrastructure and the supply chain.
Well costs stand out as one of the constraints the company is seeking to address: it said drilling a well in Argentina may currently cost about 35% more than drilling one in the Permian. It described the figure as an estimate, but it indicates the scale of the gap it wants to narrow as it expands the scale of operations and improves services, transport and infrastructure. Chevron said: "Drilling a well in Argentina today may cost about 35% more than it does in the Permian." The company links cost reductions to improving the operating and supply system, not simply transferring technical expertise from the United States. These factors take on importance as activity expands: the company said roads, logistics, services and operating capacity need to develop in step with Vaca Muerta's growth. It also pointed to the availability of sand, equipment and skilled labor among the challenges associated with keeping pace with expansion.
Chevron's Argentine operations are backed by its global Shale & Tight organization, which includes the company's major unconventional developments in the United States. That organization produces about 1.7 million barrels of oil equivalent per day across multiple basins, according to the interview. The company entered Argentina's shale oil sector with YPF in the Loma Campana project in 2013, drawing on its Permian expertise. Chevron says Loma Campana has become Argentina's largest shale oil development, producing nearly 100,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. The company owns and operates the El Trapial area, while it holds a 50% non-operated interest in Loma Campana and Narambuena in partnership with YPF, which operates the latter two projects.
In its latest expansion, Chevron said it has started developing Narambuena, with YPF as operator. This comes as the El Trapial application under RIGI remains under government review, distinguishing activity already under way from a proposed investment project that has not yet received the required approval. Chevron is also part of the Vaca Muerta Sur pipeline consortium, known as VMOS, which the company sees as important to enabling long-term production growth and access to international markets. It said transport and export capacity should keep pace with production growth, alongside the development of supply chains and services. Argentina's Ministry of Economy had approved the VMOS project's application to join RIGI as a strategic long-term export project, with base transport capacity of 377,400 barrels per day.
Chevron identified three conditions for the coming years: strengthening competitiveness and narrowing the cost gap, building export capacity commensurate with production growth, and maintaining regulatory stability and the ability to move capital and export. These priorities come as the company believes Vaca Muerta's growth requires coordination between higher production and transport and export facilities, as well as services and operating resources. On the VMOS line, it said: "Projects such as the Vaca Muerta Sur pipeline are highly important because they create a long-term platform to sustain production growth and reach international markets." In trading, Chevron shares closed at $226.68 on October 22, 2026, compared with $226.77 in the previous session, according to EL7 data. The company did not link these prices to the El Trapial proposal or its operating priorities.