Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro has said he will revive an order for two tankers contracted 11 years ago in Argentina.
He pledged state funds to finish the delayed ships ordered by state oil company PDVSA at Astilleros Rio Santiago (ARS) in Ensenada.
Maduro did not provide further details but commentators said he may view the election of left-leaning Alberto Fernandez as president of Argentina last month as a chance to revive the deal.
Outgoing president Mauricio Macri has been critical of Maduro.
"Macri, who hates us and fears us at the same time, stopped everything," Maduro told a gathering of leftist organisations in Cuba, according to Reuters.
"There's a new president. I'll tell you: Venezuela has the resources and is ready to invest and finish those two ships."
Maduro said he had been unaware of the situation until union leaders from ARS approached him in a restaurant this weekend.
Maria Eugenia Vidal, the outgoing governor of Buenos Aires province, which owns the shipyard, has said she would rather spend money on schools than subsidise it.
Chequered history
Delivery of the ships had been delayed long before Macri took office in late 2015.
Maduro's predecessor Hugo Chavez and late Argentinean president Nestor Kirchner reportedly first signed an agreement to build them in 2005.
TradeWinds' archive shows a contract signed in 2008 for delivery in 2009 at a price of $22m each, but there were no details on sizes.
One ship is reportedly an aframax called Eva Peron, which was launched in 2012.
PDVSA needs new tankers after losing control of part of its fleet due to mounting unpaid bills.
