Fracking water: a variable fee, with a discount for reuse

Neuquén moves from a flat water fee to a VARIABLE one indexed to fuel for unconventional drilling. What the rule sets, read in the official text of Decreto 792/2026 (4 pages, PDF signed on Jun 4, 2026): the fee applies «per cubic meter (m³) of water taken, extracted or granted under concession» to uses «U.2.2 – Unconventional Exploration Drilling» and «U.2.4 – Unconventional Exploitation Drilling», and its amount «shall be determined by reference to the sale price of Oil Grade 3 fuel marketed by YPF S.A. in the city of Neuquén Capital». The decree ratifies in full Disposición DI-2026-260-E-NEU-SRH#SARN of Jun 3, 2026 (art. 1); declares the reuse, recirculation, recovery and efficient use of water in unconventional hydrocarbon activity a priority public policy (art. 2); sets that management and the reduction of new withdrawals as permanent objectives (art. 3); instructs provincial agencies to promote water efficiency and reuse (art. 4); and declares of provincial interest the projects that, beyond their main activity, allocate part of the authorized water to productive, agricultural, forestry, industrial, environmental or any other uses the province declares strategic (art. 5). The fee values are in the official text of Disposición SRH N° 260/26, published in full in Official Gazette No. 4583 of Jun 9, 2026, pages 12 to 17 —not in No. 4582, where the decree runs, nor in the registry of Laws and Decrees, which is where it had been searched for—. Its Article 1 sets, verbatim, «a) From July 1, 2026: the monetary equivalent of the value of 2.5 litres of Oil Grade 3 per cubic metre (m³)» and «b) From January 1, 2027: the monetary equivalent of the value of 3 litres of Oil Grade 3 per cubic metre (m³)». Its Article 2 makes the update automatic against the price in force when the bi-monthly sworn statement falls due, and its Article 4 confirms that where the water is supplied by a third party —a loading station, a provider or indirect supply— «the applicable fee shall be the one corresponding to the final use actually given to the water resource». The decree carries neither the schedule nor the third-party supply rule: both are in Disposición 260/2026, which also requires proving the final destination of the water with sworn statements, contracts and supporting documentation (art. 4). The phrase «had lost its capacity to generate economic incentives» is not verbatim in either rule: the Disposición says the values in force «are not sufficient to generate economic signals compatible with the reuse objectives». Antecedents on the same water-shale axis, each with its own source: (a) Disposición SRH 67/2023 (Jan 25, 2023) — buried rigid piping mandatory to carry raw water in urban areas or areas of intensive or irrigated farming and livestock production, except temporary installations of up to three months a year, cover ≥1.5 times the calculated general scour (Art. 3), compliance deadline Jan 1, 2024 (Art. 11) prob; (b) Decreto 268/2022 (Feb 11, 2022) — 180 calendar days' extension of the Water, Social and Productive Emergency declared by Decreto 1379/2021 prob. verif · Jun 2026 ↗

Decreto 792/2026 carries a digital signature dated Jun 4, 2026 and ratifies Disposición 260/2026 of Jun 3, 2026; its article 7 says it «shall enter into force upon its signing», meaning it has been in force since Jun 4, 2026, and it was published in Official Gazette No. 4582 of Jun 5, 2026 verif. The fee schedule is in Disposición 260/2026, published in Official Gazette No. 4583 of Jun 9, 2026: 2.5 litres of Oil Grade 3 per m³ from Jul 1, 2026 and 3 litres per m³ from Jan 1, 2027, applicable to consumption from Jul 1, 2026 (arts. 1 and 3) verif. Antecedents: Disposición 67/2023 from January 2023, with adaptation by Jan 1, 2024 prob; Decreto 268/2022 from February 2022 prob. verif · Jun 2026 ↗

Shale and tight operators and concessionaires: from Jul 1, 2026 they pay for unconventional drilling water at a value tied to the fuel price, which updates itself with each bi-monthly sworn statement, and when the water is supplied by a third party they must prove its final destination with sworn statements and documentation verif. On the other side of the counter, it opens demand for the providers of water treatment, reuse and recirculation and flowback management, and for complementary-use projects (irrigation, forestry, industry): each reused m³ is a fee the operator saves thesis. It also touches those who carry raw water through urban areas or areas of intensive or irrigated farming, who since 2024 must do so through buried rigid piping, except temporary installations of up to three months a year prob. verif · Jun 2026 ↗