ARGENTINA Law and Practice Contributed by: Agustin Ferrari, Hernán Alal and Astrid Nottebohm, Naveira, Truffat, Martínez, Ferrari & Mallo Abogados
Argentina has also begun to see a reactivation of foreign capital seeking opportunities in sectors with structural competitive advantages and strong export potential. Mining, particularly lithium and other critical minerals, along with oil and gas, driven by the devel - opment of Vaca Muerta, continue to attract interest from international operators and strategic inves - tors. The technology sector also remains active, with Argentine-founded companies continuing to secure cross-border venture and growth capital. 1.3 Key Industries Natural resources were the dominant force in Argen - tina’s M&A landscape during 2025, with energy accounting for a substantial share of both deal volume and aggregate value. The oil and gas sector saw significant upstream activ - ity throughout the year, driven by continued develop - ment of Vaca Muerta assets and ongoing consolida - tion among operators. Notable transactions included Vista Energy’s acquisition of Petronas Argentina’s business for just under USD1.5 billion, as well as YPF’s acquisition of a 45% stake in two unconven - tional oil and gas blocks located in Neuquén province from TotalEnergies for USD500 million. Infrastructure development also featured prominently, with the con - tinued advancement of the Vaca Muerta South Pipe - line, a major project involving the main oil and gas producers in the country. The utilities sector experienced transformational change through the government’s privatisation pro - gramme. The concession of the Comahue hydro - electric complex for USD707 million represented a landmark transaction, encompassing several major facilities including Alicurá, El Chocón, Piedra del Águila and Cerros Colorados. Mining activity centred on lithium and other critical minerals, reflecting both global demand dynamics and the positive impact of the RIGI framework on project approvals. The approval of major projects under RIGI included the Los Azules copper project led by McE - wen Copper and additional lithium developments across the Salta, San Juan and Catamarca provinces. Numerous exploration and early-stage project acqui -
sitions covered gold, copper and lithium assets in sev - eral mining provinces throughout the year. The telecommunications and media sector saw nota - ble activity, with Telecom’s acquisition of Telefónica Argentina for USD1.2 billion. In the media segment, Paramount sold Telefe to a group of local investors in a transaction reportedly valued at approximately USD100 million. In the agribusiness sector, Adecoagro completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Profertil, a leading urea and ammonia producer, for USD1.2 billion. The transaction represented a strategic vertical integration for Adecoagro and positioned the company as a key player in Argentina’s agricultural inputs market. 2. Overview of Regulatory Field 2.1 Acquiring a Company The main methods for acquiring companies in Argen - tina are as follows. • Purchase of shares – either directly, by acquiring the shares of the target company, or indirectly, by acquiring the shareholding package of the target company’s shareholding companies. • Merger and/or spin-off although the merger is usu - ally a post-acquisition procedure, the acquisition of the target company can also be implemented through a merger and/or spin-off of assets. • Sale of assets – the purchase and sale of the desired assets or business units. Parties involved in a sale-of-assets transaction need to be mindful of Law No 11.867 which sets forth a specific pro - cedure for the transfer of commercial and industrial establishments. • Capital subscription – the purchase of shares to acquire a company is often accompanied by a cash-in component. The buyer applies funds to the capital of the target company which issues new shares to the buyer. • Takeover bid (oferta pública de adquisición, or OPA) – whether voluntary or mandatory, the OPA exists in Argentina for companies with shares listed in public markets. The volume of OPAs in Argentina
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