The Norte Grande coalition comprises governors Leandro Zdero of Chaco, Carlos Sadir of Jujuy, Gustavo Sáenz of Salta, Elías Suárez of Santiago del Estero, Gildo Insfrán of Formosa, Juan Pablo Valdés of Corrientes, Hugo Passalacqua of Misiones, Ricardo Quintela of La Rioja, and Raúl Jalil of Catamarca, alongside Jaldo from Tucumán. The group represents provinces across the NOA and NEA regions.
Last week, five governors met with Santilli and Economy Minister Luis Caputo at the Treasury Palace to announce what they termed a historic hot zone agreement. The accord establishes that subsidized electricity blocks for very hot zones will increase from 300 to 550 kWh, while hot zones will see increases from 150 to 300 kWh during the November to April period. Prior to that meeting, eight of the ten governors held a summit in Posadas attended by the Chief of Cabinet. The only absentees were Peronist governors Quintela and Insfrán, who avoid photographs with national officials.
The hot zone agreement represents a longstanding demand from northern provinces and emerged as the national government began modifying the cold zone regime currently applied in Patagonia and other localities. The administration positioned that framework as a negotiating piece in Congress and could generate changes to subsidies for municipalities in Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Santa Fe, Mendoza, and San Luis provinces.
The national government is simultaneously working to strengthen relationships with provincial governors following recent tensions linked to legislative and policy reforms. In that context, Santilli and Caputo signed agreements for new route transfers and public works projects with governors including Alberto Weretilneck and Rolando Figueroa, reinforcing cooperation with various provinces.
This article was curated and published as part of our South American energy market coverage.
