Oil producer Tecpetrol has announced plans to mine cryptocurrency using associated gas from its oil fields close to Vaca Muerta.
The launch of this program is anticipated for late October or early November. By converting associated gas into energy to power mining rigs, the business, a prominent player in the oil and gas industry in Argentina and other LATAM nations, hopes to allay environmental worries over gas flaring.
Ricardo Markous, the company’s chief executive officer, disclosed that gas from six field wells would be used in the mining activities. Around 60,000 cubic meters of natural gas are produced daily by these wells.
Tecpetrol has not yet revealed the cryptocurrencies it plans to mine, though. Tecpetrol has partnered strategically with a business with a track record of offering comparable services to US-based companies.
The smooth integration of crypto-mining operations with the business’s current infrastructure is anticipated to be made possible by this collaboration. The corporation has also stressed the initiative’s positive effects on the environment, emphasizing the decrease in gas flaring, a prevalent practice in distant oil fields where associated gas is frequently burned because there aren’t any facilities for evacuation.
By using the gas, according to Markous, the site’s oil production would increase and environmental effects would be reduced. To maximize the use of related gas, the company intends to erect three generating facilities that are outfitted with crypto-mining equipment.
