Argentina demands suspension of oil production off disputed islands

The UK is backing an oil project in the South Atlantic, the first barrel of which will be produced in more than a year. However, Argentina says the damage could start with the first production well. At a hearing before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, Argentina requested an emergency order to suspend the Sea Lion project during the formation of a separate arbitration commission.

The project is being implemented near the Falklands (Malvinas) Islands, an archipelago administered by the UK at the southern tip of South America, which is also claimed by Argentina. Buenos Aires is also asking the court to limit London’s use of exploration data, allow Argentina to fulfill its responsibilities to protect the marine environment and prevent steps that could deepen the dispute, such as issuing new permits, while the UK wants the request denied.

It is claimed that drilling will lead to irreversible changes on the seabed. Argentina also refers to its own environmental assessment of the project, which raises doubts about whether brigades will be able to use spill response equipment in the prevailing weather conditions at the oil field. Britain says the International Maritime Treaty does not give the arbitration panel the power to decide who owns the islands.

According to the document, the start of drilling is scheduled for March 2027, and the first oil production is the earliest in March 2028. The statement notes that Argentina has not identified an imminent threat of serious environmental damage, and argues that even a temporary shutdown could ruin a project the islands are counting on to help pay for utilities and infrastructure.

Britain controls islands in the South Atlantic, which Argentina calls the Malvinas and considers its own. In 1965, the United Nations called for sovereignty talks, in 1982 the two countries fought an undeclared war over the islands, and then in 1995 agreed to cooperate in oil and gas production.

The rules for offshore drilling and ocean protection are derived from the 1982 United Nations International Treaty, and in 1996 a tribunal was established in Hamburg to settle disputes over these rules. Argentina is now asking for drilling to be suspended until a separate commission is formed. Under the rules, the court can intervene if waiting is fraught with a risk of harm. Buenos Aires says judges can make such a decision without questioning who owns the islands. The tribunal has not yet announced when it will decide whether to pause the project.