Argentinian tax row casts shadow over upstream

Clash between federal and regional governments escalates as Chubut calls for supply disruption unless demands are met

Argentina’s firebrand President Javier Milei may have been in office only since 10 December but he has already fallen out with Patagonia’s oil-and-gas-rich provinces and prompted threats to suspend output unless austerity measures are lifted. The dispute arose in late February after the government cut national tax transfers to the southern provinces, citing debt. This caused the governor of Chubut province, Ignacio Torres—later followed by other Patagonian officials—to promise upstream disruptions unless the decision was reversed.  “The spat between Milei and the Patagonian provinces boils down to a high-stakes game of chicken, each waiting to see who will blink first,” said Mariano Machado,