Argentina Crude Exports Reach US$1.1 Billion

Argentina earned US$1.127 billion from crude oil exports in September 2026, making oil its biggest export of the month, according to INDEC, the national statistics office. That is 86.4% more than a year earlier, and the growth is tied to Vaca Muerta, the Patagonian shale formation where most new Argentine oil is drilled.

Two producers listed on the New York Stock Exchange tell different stories about who sells that oil abroad. YPF, Argentina’s state-controlled oil company, reported small crude exports, while Vista Energy, a Vaca Muerta specialist, shipped most of its oil overseas.

Official data show crude exports surging, but company filings show the gains are concentrated in a few exporters.

What the Official Trade Data Shows

INDEC reported on Monday 19 October 2026 that September exports totalled US$10.036 billion, with a trade surplus of US$2.976 billion. Crude oil, at US$1.127 billion, was the single largest product, up from US$605 million in September 2025.

Over January to September, crude exports reached US$7.753 billion, 58.6% more than the US$4.889 billion of the same period in 2025. INDEC adds that crude values for a month reflect customs operations opened up to 45 days before the export date, so monthly figures can lag the actual loading.

Vista Ships Most of Its Oil Abroad

Vista Energy, a company that focuses on Vaca Muerta, reported that it sold 9.9 million barrels of crude abroad in the third quarter of 2026. That was 56% more than a year earlier and 73% of its oil sales volume, according to its earnings release.

By our own division over the 92-day quarter, that is roughly 108,000 barrels a day. Export sales brought in US$853.7 million, at an average of US$86.0 a barrel, against US$79.5 a barrel on the domestic market.

YPF Keeps Most of Its Crude at Home

YPF’s third-quarter filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, dated 28 October 2026, lists crude oil exports of 32.2 thousand barrels a day. That is down 5% on the second quarter and 16% below the third quarter of 2025.

The same filing puts YPF’s total crude output at 261.4 thousand barrels a day, so exports are about one barrel in eight. Shale oil, produced by fracking, reached 224.1 thousand barrels a day, or 86% of its oil.

YPF cites lower crude exports and weaker Brent (the global oil price benchmark), and notes a return to the “customary domestic discount” of Medanito, an Argentine crude grade, to Brent. In the second quarter Medanito had sold at an exceptional premium.

Why the Export Shift Matters

Crude sold abroad is paid in dollars, and September’s US$522 million year-on-year gain in crude was the main reason INDEC’s fuels and mineral oils exports rose 88.4%. Argentina’s trade surplus has now run for 34 straight months.

The gains reach shareholders unevenly, because a producer that exports almost three barrels in four, such as Vista, is more exposed to Brent swings than one that exports about one in eight, as YPF does. Our report on Vaca Muerta exports offers more background on the record run.

Where the Oil Goes and What Limits It

INDEC’s report shows the weight of the US market. Crude oil and gold made up 41.8% of Argentina’s exports to the USMCA bloc of the United States, Canada and Mexico in September, and the United States took 78.1% of that bloc’s total.

For the Chilean side of the trade, see our report on Chile’s Puerto Coronel port. The main constraint is pipeline space: YPF says the Vaca Muerta Oil Sur export pipeline, a new line from the Vaca Muerta shale field to the Atlantic coast, was about 85% complete in September 2026, with first oil expected in early 2027.

YPF expects the line to start at about 180 thousand barrels a day, rising to about 550 thousand in the second half of 2027. Two offshore loading buoys arrived at the Atlantic port in Río Negro province in early October 2026.

What It Means for You

Investors in the New York-listed shares of YPF or Vista can see in these filings that export-heavy and domestic-heavy producers behave differently when Brent moves. Buyers of Argentine crude, including refiners in the United States and Chile, may see more barrels as pipeline capacity grows.

For readers following Argentina’s economy, oil is becoming a steady source of foreign currency alongside farm goods. Coverage of Argentina’s plan to finance gas exports and other energy plans is on our Argentina news page.

What Is Not Known

The shares of YPF, Pan American Energy and Vista in total Argentine crude exports could not be confirmed from official data. Pan American Energy, a large private producer, publishes no export figure we could find, and the company-level data of the Energy Secretariat, Argentina’s federal energy authority, were not reachable.

Official September volumes in barrels a day and the split of crude by destination country were also not confirmed. Whether October exports kept pace will be known on Thursday 19 November 2026, when INDEC publishes the next trade report.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much crude did Argentina export in September 2026?

INDEC reported US$1.127 billion, 86.4% more than in September 2025. Crude oil was the largest single export product of the month.

Is YPF Argentina’s biggest crude exporter?

YPF’s filing shows crude exports of 32.2 thousand barrels a day in the third quarter, down 16% in a year. Vista, by our calculation, exported about 108,000 barrels a day, so a national ranking is not confirmed.

When will the next official export data come out?

INDEC is due to publish its October foreign trade report on Thursday 19 November 2026. It will show whether crude exports stayed above US$1 billion.

What will the new Vaca Muerta pipeline change?

YPF says the Vaca Muerta Oil Sur pipeline should send its first oil in early 2027, about 180 thousand barrels a day. Capacity is planned to reach about 550 thousand in the second half of 2027.

Sources: INDEC, Intercambio comercial argentino, September 2026 (19 October 2026) and release calendar; YPF Form 6-K, third quarter 2026 (28 October 2026); Vista Energy earnings release, third quarter 2026.