The license extension enables completion of Edenor’s $780 million purchase of YPF’s 70 percent stake in Metrogas, which distributes gas to 2.4 million customers across Buenos Aires city and 11 southern metropolitan municipalities. Manzano already holds 9.23 percent of Metrogas through Integra Gas Distribution. The original 35-year concession granted during 1992 privatization under President Carlos Menem was set to expire in December 2027, with a 10-year extension option built into initial contracts. The Ley Bases approved with opposition support added an additional 10-year extension period for utility concessions.
The extension agreement imposes $186.8 million in mandatory infrastructure investments over 10 years, addressing capital commitments that were suspended during 2019-2020 tariff freezes. These investments will not be passed to consumers through tariffs, and completed works transfer to state ownership at concession end without compensation. Metrogas and its controlling shareholders must withdraw all domestic and international legal claims against the Argentine state as a condition of the extension. Any future disputes must be resolved in Argentine courts, with obligations binding on future shareholders.
The transaction consolidates the Vila-Manzano-Filiberti group’s position across essential services in the Buenos Aires metropolitan area. Beyond Edenor, which serves 9 million electricity customers, and Metrogas, partner Mauricio Filiberti supplies chlorine to Aysa water utility. The group’s energy portfolio extends to Vaca Muerta unconventional production through Phoenix Global Resources, Shell-branded fuel retail operations with Mercuria Energy, and telecommunications through Telefe acquired from Paramount for $95 million in October 2025.
Metrogas gross profit doubled between 2023 and 2025 amid tariff restructuring, with first-half 2026 operating income reaching 132.456 billion pesos. The company resumed dividend distributions in 2024 after a two-decade suspension. Argentina maintains approximately 40 percent of households without piped gas access despite holding substantial natural gas reserves.
This article was curated and published as part of our South American energy market coverage.
