Authorities affirm that hydrocarbon activities on the Argentine continental shelf require national authorization.
On Wednesday, the Argentine government filed new criminal complaints against five oil companies operating in the Malvinas Islands, which are under British administration, for violating national legislation requiring authorization for hydrocarbon activities.
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The companies named in the complaints are Rockhopper Exploration Hydrocarbons Limited, Rockhopper Exploration Oil Limited, Borders & Southern Falkland Islands Limited, Borders & Southern Petroleum PLC, and Desire Petroleum Limited.
Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno filed the complaints, with legal representation from the National Treasury Attorney’s Office, as part of previous legal proceedings. In parallel, the complaint being processed in Federal Court No. 12 was expanded to include new facts and companies linked to the Sea Lion project.
The first complaint included the Israeli company Navitas Petroleum Limited Partnership, its British subsidiaries NPDP and NAPL, as well as Canadian companies JHI Associates and Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas Ltd.
The Sea Lion project, located in the North Malvinas Basin, is operated by Navitas Petroleum Development & Production, which holds a 65% stake, in partnership with the British company Rockhopper Exploration.
Argentine President Javier Milei has announced plans to build an integrated naval base in Tierra del Fuego, near the Falkland Islands.
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The documents identify executives with financial, legal, technical, and operational responsibilities, including directors, managers, administrators, and representatives of the companies under investigation.
Argentina maintains that hydrocarbon activities on its continental shelf require national authorization and that operating without such authorization violates current legislation.
In addition to the criminal complaints, the Argentine government initiated administrative proceedings to sanction some 60 companies and shareholders involved in oil operations in the archipelago.
#Argentina | Social organizations rallied outside Congress as lawmakers debated a household debt crisis affecting around 20 million people and the extension of the Disability Emergency Law.
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Source: EFE
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