Pampa Energía Wins Approval for Giant Plant

Pampa Energía received approval from the Argentine government to enter the Large Investment Incentive Regime, known as RIGI. The approval came through Resolution 1468/2026 of the Ministry of Economy, published on 7 September 2026 in the Official Gazette. Through its subsidiary Fértil Pampa, the company will invest $2.693 billion in an industrial fertiliser initiative named Proyecto Fertilizantes.

The complex will cover roughly 80 hectares at Puerto de Ingeniero White in Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires province. It will feature two urea plants with a daily capacity of 6,000 tonnes and an ammonia plant producing 3,450 tonnes per day. On an annual basis, output will reach around 2.2 million tonnes of granulated urea and 1.2 million tonnes of ammonia, using natural gas piped from Vaca Muerta. Pampa Energía plans to export nearly 60% of production, mainly to Brazil, while replacing domestic urea imports.

The investment enters the agricultural sector to compete directly with Profertil, owned by Adecoagro since last year. Profertil currently operates a plant in Bahía Blanca with an annual capacity of 1.3 million tonnes of granulated urea and 790,000 tonnes of ammonia, supplying 60% of the domestic market while evaluating a second facility. Construction of the Fértil Pampa complex will be handled by Tecnimont and SACDE across two phases.

The first phase began on 17 July 2026 and runs until 31 December 2027, requiring $1.105 billion for engineering and equipment procurement. The second phase will run from 1 January 2028 to 16 December 2029 with an outlay of $1.588 billion for equipment assembly, testing, and commissioning. Pampa Energía, led by Marcelo Mindlin, is the third-largest gas producer in Vaca Muerta. In March 2026, the company also requested RIGI access for a $4.5 billion shale oil development in Rincón de Aranda, Neuquén.

According to INDEC data, Argentina imported 4.1 million tonnes of fertilisers in 2025, an increase of 28% compared to 2024 and the second-highest level this century. Nitrogen fertilisers represented the largest share, with urea accounting for 2.10 million tonnes, or 52% of total imports.