As Iran Blocks Gulf Shipping, South America Steps Up Its Oil and Gas Production

View of Argentine oil company YPF’s pumpjack to extract oil from a well at Loma La Lata, near Vaca Muerta shale oil reservoir, in Neuquén Province, Argentina. Juan Mabromata/AFP/Getty ImagesAs Iran makes headlines for its attacks on oil shipments from Persian Gulf states, South America is quietly expanding its production of oil and gas, with longer-term prospects of supplanting a significant portion of oil from the Middle East.The United States has already risen to become the leading producer of oil and gas, thanks in large part to the widespread implementation of fracking technology starting in the 1980s. But several South American nations, such as Brazil, Guyana, and Argentina, are steadily boosting their oil output in what analysts say could provide a welcome diversification for global energy markets.