Prime Highlights-
- Vista produces 160,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day and has invested more than $6.5 billion in Argentina.
- Vista raised its investment and production outlook for Vaca Muerta in May, a formation roughly the size of Belgium.
Key Facts-
- Peter Thiel’s Thiel Macro LLC acquires a 1 per cent stake in Vista worth about $76 million.
- The investment follows Thiel’s meeting with President Javier Milei and his purchase of a home in Buenos Aires.
Background-
Palantir chair and co-founder Peter Thiel has bought a 1 per cent stake in Vista, one of the largest oil companies operating in Argentina’s Vaca Muerta shale formation, according to a US Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
The filing showed Thiel’s Thiel Macro LLC hedge fund purchased around 1.2 million American Depositary Shares in Vista worth about $76 million, matching a 1 per cent stake in the company.
The fund’s overall portfolio stood at $418.7 million, with holdings in Vistra, Amazon and energy firms including American Electric Power, DTE Energy, FirstEnergy, CMS Energy and X-Energy.
The investment comes months after Thiel met Argentine President Javier Milei at the presidential palace, where the two discussed economic policy. Thiel has also purchased a home in an upscale Buenos Aires neighbourhood, according to local media reports.
Vista operates across Vaca Muerta, home to the world’s second-largest shale gas reserves and fourth-largest oil reserves, located in Neuquen province in Argentina’s Patagonia region.
The company currently produces 160,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day and has invested more than $6.5 billion in Argentina. In May, Vista raised its investment and production outlook for the formation, which spans an area roughly the size of Belgium.
Milei has also spoken about plans to use Patagonia’s open spaces and cold climate to support new data center development in the region.