Argentina is a country with a long history of searching for messiahs. Far from long-term solutions, much of Argentine society devotes itself to a brilliant leader’s capabilities, or to our soil’s richness. Some of this seems to be happening again with the construction of the auspicious Nestor Kirchner gas pipeline.
In times of war, gas becomes a hot commodity, which Argentina will soon be able to trade. When will that be? The most optimistic analyses predict it won’t be possible before mid-2023. Coincidentally, this is also the time when the presidential election will take place, and the polls show President Fernandez at a disadvantage.
With the highest year-on-year inflation in the last 40 years (over 100%), it is unlikely that one more ribbon cutting will tilt the vote in favor of the protracted Kirchnerist project, which some see in its twilight.
From the caudillo Juan Manuel de Rosas to General Juan Domingo Perón in the political sphere, passing through soccer players Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi in the field of sports; the climatic good fortune for the harvest that brings dividends claims Vaca Muerta to be a “world class resource that is changing the energy reality of the country.” Argentines remain hopeful, but skeptical, and impatient (rightly so) in waiting for revenues that never seem to arrive.
Meanwhile, factors such as environmental exploitation are being ignored in developing countries by supposedly more pressing and relevant urgencies.
Norway’s Petroleum History
Searching for successful precedent, Ricardo Torres, founder of the country’s most important electric service company, cited Norway’s discovery and exploitation of oil reserves in the 1960s during an August television interview.
Within the framework of a government united by fear, and fractured almost from the beginning, the Vice President and leader of Peronism, Cristina Kirchner, asked the company in charge of building the Nestor Kirchner gas pipeline, the Italian-Argentine giant Techint, in June that “the laminated sheet metal that they make in Brazil be brought here along with a production line to make it here,” in view of the shortage of foreign currency that still plagues the Central Bank.
Kirchner’s statements exposed internal division by creating an uproar, culminating in Minister of Productive Development, Matías Kulfas’ resignation. Kulfas coincidentally had previously authored a book highly critical of the two-time President.
The ministry under Kulfas’ leadership had released a number of messages to journalists accusing officials linked to Kirchner of creating a “tailor-made” bidding process to suit Techint’s needs. The company’s CEO, Paolo Rocca, strictly denied it at the Argentine Business Association’s meeting, which gathers the nation’s most influential personalities.
Messianisms and divisions aside, if the Nestor Kirchner gas pipeline’s goal is to salvage or at least help Argentina, we must reach a consensus on where the project’s dividends will go. To repeat Norway’s success, this project must benefit the population as a whole, support a national vision and, for once, focus on development with long-term returns.
Photo by John Kinnander on Unsplash
About the Author
Santiago Sourigues is an Argentine journalist and copywriter. He currently works for La Nacion and holds a degree in Communication Sciences from the University of Buenos Aires.