An Argentine judge Tuesday ordered the breakup of a protest blocking access to the biggest oil field in Argentina after more than a week of limiting output.
Federal Judge Eva Parcio made the order to clear a roadblock and demonstration at the entrance to Cerro Dragon, source of 15% of the country's 570,000 b/d of crude, according to a statement by the government of Chubut province.
Chubut Governor Martin Buzzi said in the statement that the provincial police would be in charge of removing the protesters, and that they would try to do so peacefully.
"We are not going to suppress," Buzzi said.
But he warned that he believes there are protesters who want to create violence, presumably to mar his administration and destabilize the provincial economy, which relies heavily on oil tax revenue.
The Argentine media reported that 200 police officers had been sent to break up the 400-strong protest.
The protesting workers, dubbed the Dragones, have been blocking access to the field since June 21 to demand higher wages.
The protest brought output to a standstill for a week at Cerro Dragon until the operator, BP-backed Pan American Energy, was able to get workers in and restart some operations.
On Saturday, the company said it had restored to 100% the injection of natural gas into a backbone pipeline feeding cities like Buenos Aires, and put back into operation 43% of the productive oil and gas wells at the field. It said the field was operating at 40% capacity for crude and at 54% capacity when including gas.
Cerro Dragon produces 86,800 b/d of crude and 8.6 million cubic meters/d of gas, or 7.2% of the 120 million cu m/d national total for gas.
BP owns 60% of Pan American, while the rest is held by Buenos Aires-based Bridas, which is backed by China's CNOOC.
