Repsol natural gas lot production to stay in Peru

LIMA, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Spanish energy firm Repsol (REP.MC: Quote, Profile, Research) and the Peruvian government agreed on Thursday that natural gas output from the company's lot 57 would be sold exclusively to the local market.

Critics have put pressure on President Alan Garcia in recent weeks to guarantee domestic gas supplies, saying export of the fuel could lead to local shortages.

"We have agreed that Lot 57 will go to the domestic market," Mining and Energy Minister Pedro Sanchez told reporters in Lima.

Repsol representatives in Spain confirmed the deal.

Lot 57 has around 2 trillion cubic feet of gas, according to reserve estimates.

Repsol is part of the Camisea consortium, which is led by Argentina's Pluspetrol. The consortium's lots 88 and 56 are slated to supply gas to the domestic market and also feed a liquefied natural gas export facility that is being built. Its main owner is U.S.-based Hunt Oil.

Sanchez also said that between 2010 and 2015, the consortium would not export any gas from lot 88 and that it would invest roughly $200 million to expand and develop reserves located in lot 56. That lot, 56, will supply the LNG export plant.

The consortium says it has some 14.1 tcf of proven gas reserves that would last through 2047, though a recent study by an energy consulting firm estimated a more modest 8.79 tcf.

Repsol holds or has a stake in at least eight blocks in Peru. The company also operates La Pampilla, an oil refinery near the Pacific coast. (Reporting by Patricia Velez in Lima and Clara Vilar in Madrid; Writing by Dana Ford; Editing by Marguerita Choy)