Spains Repsol YPF changed its name to Repsol S.A. after Argentinas nationalization of YPF, and indicated a base oil expansion project at its Cartagena refinery will continue as planned.
Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner confirmed in a government notice May 30 that Repsols 51 percent share in YPF would officially be in the hands of the government as of June 4. YPF is Argentinas leading lubricants supplier and operates a 4,700 barrels per day API Group I base oil plant in La Plata.
In June 2010, SK Lubricants of Seoul, South Korea, announced plans to partner with Repsol to build a 13,000 b/d Group II and III base oil plant at Repsols Cartagena refinery. It is scheduled to begin production in 2014.
The unlawful expropriation of YPF does not in any way affect the growth capacity of any of Repsols businesses outside Argentina, as the companys financial strength and its assets allow it to continue with its growth plans in the coming years, Repsol said in a statement May 31 following its annual general meeting. Operational expansion projects at the Cartagena and Bilbao refineries in Spain are expected to raise Repsols refining margin by about $3 per barrel by 2016.
Repsol said it has taken legal action inside and outside Argentina to recover damage caused to the company by the countrys nationalization of YPF on April 16. The refiner has said it intends to take the matter to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes.