Argentina is facing a natural gas scarcity crisis amid a polar wave hitting the country. The government declared a nationwide consumption ban on industries and compressed natural gas (CNG) stations. Meanwhile, some households across the country are facing gas cuts.

According to the government gas regulation agency Enargas, demand peaked at around 100 million cubic meters per day (Mm3/d)— a 25% increase compared to the same period last year.

A communiqué by the Economy Ministry said that the cause for the demand’s peak was the country registering the lowest temperatures “in more than 30 years and with lows as low as minus 11 degrees in some provinces.”

“It was an extreme situation — I pray God this doesn’t happen again,” said Mónica Jaureguy, 62, a housewife living in Villa La Angostura, a city in the southern Patagonia region where........

© Buenos Aires Herald