Santa Cruz Province
Patagonia extraction: Deseado Massif gold mines, Río Turbio coal, petroleum exploration (August 2024 discovery). Seeking Vaca Muerta replication. By 2026: testing if oil potential materializes.
Santa Cruz Province represents Patagonia's extractive trifecta: petroleum exploration seeking the next Vaca Muerta, gold mining across the Deseado Massif's volcanic plateau, and Argentina's only significant coal production at Río Turbio. The provincial government actively courts investment, participating in Argentina Oil and Gas Patagonia 2024 with expectations focused on Palermo Aike exploration results.
The petroleum narrative remains aspirational. In late 2023, YPF and CGC drilled the first horizontal well in the basin (4,683 meters total depth, 1,000-meter horizontal branch), declaring hydrocarbon discovery in August 2024. Whether Santa Cruz can replicate Neuquén's Vaca Muerta success—transforming Argentina from importer to exporter—depends on exploration results the province actively pursues.
Gold mining provides current production. The Deseado Massif (six million hectares) hosts multiple operations: Cerro Negro, Cerro Vanguardia, Cerro Moro, Manantial Espejo, San José Huevos Verdes. Patagonia Gold produced 2,810 gold equivalent ounces from Cap-Oeste in 2024 while spending $3 million on exploration. This diversified precious metal base generates revenue while petroleum potential develops.
Coal at Río Turbio—operational for decades—provides thermal coal for electricity generation and industry, the rare Argentine coal production outside of import dependency.
By 2026, Santa Cruz tests whether hydrocarbon discoveries justify exploration investment, or whether the province remains dependent on gold and coal while petroleum production concentrates in Neuquén.