Neuquén sets entry rules to operate in Vaca Muerta: registry and minimum equity

Decreto 1342/2015 (06/19/2015) creates the Provincial Registry of Hydrocarbon Companies, run by the Undersecretariat of Mining and Hydrocarbons. It establishes mandatory registry enrollment for every company that operates or wants to operate in the province, with annual data update/ratification (July). It sets a solvency threshold: to hold an exploration permit or an exploitation concession —and for an assignment of rights to be authorized— the company must evidence a Net Equity of no less than $2,000,000 (TWO million Argentine pesos, NOT dollars; the amount is NOT indexed, so inflation has eroded it to a symbolic floor). Equity is evidenced with financial statements audited and certified by the Professional Council. The decree distinguishes operator companies (must evidence technical capacity to develop hydrocarbon projects, Art. 2.2.1) from non-operator / investor ones (exempt from technical capacity, they may hold stakes in permits, Arts. 2.1.1-2.1.3). In transfers: total assignments (Art. 1.4.2) require the future concessionaire to hold that minimum Net Equity when requesting authorization; partial assignments (Art. 1.4.3) require the resulting association to maintain it. Sanctions (Art. 4.1): warning, suspension of up to 5 years or removal from the registry. verif · Jun 19, 2015 ↗

2015-06-19 prob · Jun 19, 2015 ↗

Operators and investor (non-operator) companies that want to hold permits/concessions or acquire stakes in Neuquén areas; buyers and sellers in M&A operations over concessions (regulatory due diligence); legal-accounting firms that assemble the enrollment and certify financial statements. For satellite-service SMEs the decree is context (it does not enroll them but their operator clients), but it defines the universe of potential clients the province enables to operate. prob · Jun 19, 2015 ↗