Americas Petrogas
Americas Petrogas was a Canadian oil and natural-gas exploration and production company focused on Argentina's Neuquén Basin.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Americas Petrogas, Inc. was a Canadian exploration and production company established in 2004 by oil and gas entrepreneurs Barclay Hambrook and Carlos Lau. The founders intended to build a South American energy business by identifying hydrocarbon basins with attractive geology, manageable political and fiscal conditions, and access to infrastructure that could support eventual commercialization. After considering opportunities in several countries, they selected Argentina, particularly the Neuquén Basin, whose geological characteristics were viewed as comparable in important respects to Western Canada's oil and gas regions. The company was initially financed privately by the founders and their families while it assembled a land position, technical team, and operating capability. The company's principal business was the exploration and development of conventional and unconventional oil and gas resources in Argentina. It became one of the larger landholders in the Neuquén Basin, with approximately 900,000 net acres across 12 blocks. Americas Petrogas operated 11 of those blocks and retained operatorship in four blocks developed through a joint venture with ExxonMobil. Its portfolio included acreage prospective for the Vaca Muerta, Lower Agrio, and Los Molles shale formations, as well as conventional exploration and production interests in the Medanito Sur, Rinconada Norte, and Vaca Mahuida blocks. Unconventional shale resources became the company's central strategic focus. Americas Petrogas drilled five Vaca Muerta shale wells, and the company reported that each was a discovery. The wells were tested as part of the early delineation of the formation and were described as among the better-performing shale wells in the Neuquén Basin at that stage of development. ExxonMobil and other international oil companies showed interest in partnering on the company's shale blocks. The ExxonMobil joint venture covered four of the company's nine shale blocks, with Americas Petrogas continuing as operator. The partners announced three Vaca Muerta discoveries. A 2013 resource report by petroleum engineering firm Ryder Scott, updated in 2014, estimated approximately 7.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent on a P50 best-case, unrisked prospective recoverable basis for the company's unconventional acreage. The estimate related to the Vaca Muerta, Lower Agrio, and Los Molles shales across nine western shale blocks. This was a prospective-resource estimate rather than booked production or proved reserves, and it represented the scale of the opportunity the company sought to develop rather than realized commercial output. Americas Petrogas also had an agricultural-minerals initiative in Peru through subsidiary GrowMax Agri Corp. That business pursued a large phosphate, potash, and carnallite fertilizer project in the Sechura Desert in northern Peru, adjacent to Vale's Bayóvar phosphate operation. The Peruvian project broadened the company's asset base beyond hydrocarbons but did not alter its historical identity as an Argentina-focused exploration company. The company ended its involvement in oil in 2016 and subsequently changed its name to GrowMax Resources Corp. The Americas Petrogas corporate identity therefore belongs to a former phase of the business. Available reference material does not establish a separate current operating status, continuing ownership structure, or a current corporate website for Americas Petrogas under its former name.
History
Americas Petrogas was founded in 2004 by Barclay Hambrook and Carlos Lau, who sought to create a South American oil and gas exploration business. Their evaluation considered political risk, fiscal regimes, geology, infrastructure, local operating conditions, and access to technical services. They ruled out or deprioritized several countries for reasons including political uncertainty, state control of the petroleum sector, limited opportunity, security concerns, or difficult operating environments. Argentina was ultimately selected because the Neuquén Basin combined a long history of petroleum activity with underexplored unconventional potential and geological features that the founders considered comparable to parts of Western Canada. The business began with private funding from the founders and their families. Hambrook and Lau assembled a land portfolio and recruited a management and field organization capable of operating in Argentina. Over time, the company accumulated nearly 900,000 net acres in 12 large Neuquén Basin blocks. It operated 11 blocks, including four in a joint venture with ExxonMobil. The company retained operatorship of the ExxonMobil-partnered acreage, giving it responsibility for much of the technical and operational work. Americas Petrogas pursued both conventional and unconventional resources. Conventional exploration and production activity included the Medanito Sur, Rinconada Norte, and Vaca Mahuida blocks. Its strategic emphasis, however, moved toward unconventional shale oil and gas, particularly the Vaca Muerta formation and related Lower Agrio and Los Molles targets. The company drilled five Vaca Muerta shale wells and described all five as discoveries. Testing indicated strong early performance relative to other shale wells drilled in the Neuquén Basin at the time. The company's acreage attracted attention from ExxonMobil and other major oil companies, leading to the ExxonMobil joint venture on four blocks and the announcement of three Vaca Muerta discoveries. In 2013, Ryder Scott Company petroleum engineers prepared a resource report for the company's unconventional blocks. An update followed in 2014. The report estimated net P50 best-case, unrisked prospective recoverable resources of approximately 7.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent in the Vaca Muerta, Lower Agrio, and Los Molles shales across nine western shale blocks. This figure represented prospective resources and should not be interpreted as proved reserves, production, or realized revenue. It nevertheless helped communicate the potential scale of the company's acreage and supported its efforts to attract strategic partners. The company also pursued a non-hydrocarbon project through GrowMax Agri Corp. In northern Peru's Sechura Desert, the subsidiary explored and developed a proposed phosphate, potash, and carnallite fertilizer project near Vale's Bayóvar phosphate mine. The initiative was intended to provide exposure to fertilizer minerals in addition to petroleum exploration. Reference material identifies Vale, Mitsui, and Mosaic in connection with the surrounding Bayóvar venture context, but does not establish that they owned Americas Petrogas. By 2014, the Argentine organization comprised approximately 35 employees in Buenos Aires and 15 field personnel. The technical group included individuals with experience at Chauvco Resources Argentina, Pioneer Natural Resources Argentina, and other North American and international oil companies. In 2016, Americas Petrogas ended its involvement in oil and changed its name to GrowMax Resources Corp. This marked the end of the company's operation under the Americas Petrogas name and the transition toward a different corporate and strategic identity.
- 2016
Corporate name changed to GrowMax Resources
[1]After ending its involvement in oil, the company changed its name to GrowMax Resources Corp.
- 2014
Updated shale-resource report
[1]The resource assessment was updated for acreage prospective for the Vaca Muerta, Lower Agrio, and Los Molles formations.
- 2013
Initial Ryder Scott resource assessment
[1]Ryder Scott assessed the company's unconventional acreage and estimated approximately 7.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent of P50 best-case, unrisked prospective recoverable resources.
- 2004
Company founded
[1]Barclay Hambrook and Carlos Lau founded Americas Petrogas and began building a privately financed exploration business focused on Argentina's Neuquén Basin.
Products and positioning
A basin-focused exploration and production company that built a large Neuquén Basin land position and pursued early-stage unconventional shale development in Argentina, with an additional fertilizer-minerals project in Peru.
Conventional exploration and production · 2004
Neuquén Basin conventional oil and gas assets
Americas Petrogas held and operated conventional exploration and production interests in Argentine Neuquén Basin blocks including Medanito Sur, Rinconada Norte, and Vaca Mahuida. These assets complemented the company's larger unconventional shale program and provided exposure to established petroleum activity in the basin.
Unconventional oil and gas exploration
Vaca Muerta shale program
The Vaca Muerta program was the company's main unconventional exploration focus. Americas Petrogas drilled five shale wells, reported each as a discovery, and tested them as part of early basin appraisal. The company operated the majority of its acreage and retained operatorship in four blocks partnered with ExxonMobil.
Phosphate, potash, and carnallite development
Sechura fertilizer-minerals project
Through subsidiary GrowMax Agri Corp, the company explored and developed a proposed fertilizer-minerals project in Peru's Sechura Desert. The project targeted phosphate, potash, and carnallite resources and was located adjacent to Vale's Bayóvar surface phosphate mine.
Brand decisions
2016
Exit from oil and corporate rebrandingStrategyBackground
The company ended its involvement in oil after operating under the Americas Petrogas identity.
Action taken
It changed its corporate name to GrowMax Resources Corp.
Aftermath
The Americas Petrogas name ceased to represent the continuing corporate business, while the company's direction shifted toward its remaining or developing non-oil interests.
2004
Focus on Argentina's Neuquén BasinStrategyBackground
The founders assessed South American countries using political, fiscal, geological, infrastructure, and operating-risk criteria.
Action taken
They selected the Neuquén Basin as the company's primary exploration area and began assembling a large acreage position.
Aftermath
The decision produced the company's core Argentine portfolio and positioned it to pursue both conventional and Vaca Muerta shale opportunities.
- ExxonMobil joint venture on four shale blocksM&A
Background
The company's Neuquén Basin acreage attracted interest from ExxonMobil and other international oil companies.
Action taken
Americas Petrogas entered a joint venture with ExxonMobil covering four of its shale blocks while retaining operatorship.
Aftermath
The partners announced three Vaca Muerta discoveries, strengthening the visibility of the company's unconventional portfolio.
Recent events
- 2016
Americas Petrogas ended its oil involvement and changed its name[1]
Leadership change
The company ended its involvement in oil and changed its corporate name to GrowMax Resources Corp., reflecting a transition away from the Americas Petrogas identity.
- 2014
Ryder Scott updated the company's unconventional resource assessment[1]
Other
The updated assessment continued to attribute substantial prospective shale resources to the Vaca Muerta, Lower Agrio, and Los Molles formations across nine western blocks.
- 2013
Ryder Scott estimated Americas Petrogas prospective shale resources[1]
Other
An independent Ryder Scott report assessed the company's unconventional acreage at approximately 7.6 billion barrels of oil equivalent on a P50 best-case, unrisked prospective recoverable basis.
- 2004
Americas Petrogas established a South American exploration business[1]
Other
Barclay Hambrook and Carlos Lau founded the company and began assembling a portfolio and operating team focused on Argentina's Neuquén Basin.
Americas Petrogas entered an ExxonMobil shale joint venture[1]
M&A · Product launch
ExxonMobil partnered with Americas Petrogas on four of its shale blocks, while Americas Petrogas retained operatorship. The partners announced three Vaca Muerta discoveries.
Sources1 sources
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