Neuquén will be able to award its national routes to private players as toll concessions

By Decreto nacional 253/2026 (Apr 16, 2026, Official Gazette Apr 17, 2026), the National Executive delegates to nine provinces —among them Neuquén— the power to grant public-works toll concessions over sections of national routes located in their territory. Art. 1 verbatim: "The power to grant public-works toll concessions for the administration, repair, expansion, conservation or maintenance of sections of national routes is delegated to the Provinces...". Concrete mechanics: (1) the delegation is "functional, limited, temporary and revocable" and the National State retains ownership of the routes; (2) each province signs an agreement with the National Highway Directorate that individualizes the sections and must include a works plan, technical schedule, projected maximum toll and a commitment to hold the National State harmless; (3) the province must call the concessionaire-selection procedure within a maximum of ONE (1) year from the agreement's approval, and if it does not, the delegation over that section lapses (art. 8); (4) the province exercises the delegated power for the term set by each agreement, which can never exceed 30 years from its approval (art. 3); (5) the concessionaires can be private, mixed companies or public entities; (6) Art. 7 verbatim: "The funds obtained from the exploitation of the section under concession may not be allocated to the construction or maintenance of other sections or other works of any nature, even where they have a physical, technical or other connection with it". For Neuquén, Governor Figueroa announced that National Route 242 (part of the Pino Hachado international pass) and part of the RN22 (the entrance from Río Negro to the capital up to Arroyito) will be transferred, with "tolls and weighing for trucks" verif. Pending confirmation in the primary source: the detail of Neuquén's concrete sections comes from the governor's statements in provincial official press, NOT from the decree text (the Official Gazette names no routes); the definitive sections are set in the agreement with the National Highway Directorate, not yet signed. verif · Apr 17, 2026 ↗

In force since Apr 18, 2026, the day after its publication in the Official Gazette (art. 12). The delegation is only exercised once the Secretaría de Transporte approves the agreement with Vialidad Nacional that identifies the stretches (arts. 2 and 3); from that approval, the Province has one year to call the tender, and if it does not the delegation lapses for that stretch (art. 8). verif · Apr 17, 2026 ↗

The Province of Neuquén (as the new granting authority over sections of national routes in its territory), the National Highway Directorate (the agreement counterpart, which retains ownership), the future private/mixed concessionaires that take the RN242 and the RN22 section (Arroyito-capital) by toll, the construction and road-maintenance companies, the toll- and weighing-system operators, and the users of those routes —particularly the freight transport linked to Vaca Muerta and the Pino Hachado international pass—. Also the other 8 delegated provinces (Corrientes, Santa Fe, Córdoba, San Luis, Mendoza, Río Negro, San Juan, Santa Cruz). prob · Apr 17, 2026 ↗