Argentina privatize Water Utilities
Argentina's government has announced it's starting the privatization process for the country's public water company, Aguas y Saneamientos Argentinos (AySA). Presidential spokesman Manuel Adorni confirmed this at a press conference at Casa Rosada, as reported by 'La Nación'.
Specifically, the Argentine executive branch will transfer 90% of the state's shares in AySA to private capital, with the remaining 10% going to the company's employees as part of an "employee ownership program."
Adorni stated during his address that "privatization will allow for the modernization of the sector and improve the quality of service."
According to the presidential spokesman, AySA required injections from the Argentine Treasury exceeding $13.4 billion (11.522 billion euros) between 2006, when it became a public company, and 2023. Adorni cited several reasons for the government's decision, including a 90% increase in staffing during state management and a rise in user delinquency to 16%, up from an average of 4%.
The privatization of AySA is part of President Javier Milei's broader plan to transfer a list of public companies to private ownership. The first was the metallurgical company Impsa, which was sold for $27 million (23 million euros) to the American company Arc Energy last January.
