YPF, Argentina’s state-controlled energy company, agreed Thursday to pay US$430 million for the remaining 24.99% of its power-generation arm, YPF Luz. It’s buying the stake from BNR Power Investments, moving toward full ownership of a company that generated about 10% of Argentina’s supplied electricity in the 12 months to June 2026.
YPF’s board approved the purchase of 237,499,943 Class B shares, which carry 24.99% of YPF Luz’s capital and voting rights. YPF already owns 75.01%. If the transaction’s conditions precedent are met, it will own 100%. No closing date has been given.
Ownership and earnings
YPF Luz operates power plants and sells electricity from thermal and renewable sources. Its installed capacity is 3,764 megawatts: 2,740 MW of thermal capacity and 1,024 MW of renewable capacity across eight Argentine provinces.
The company reported adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization of US$479 million over the 12 months to June 2026. Its EBITDA reached US$130 million in the second quarter of 2026, and its net leverage stood at 1.5 times. The Rio Times calculated that YPF’s US$430 million offer implied an equity value of about US$1.72 billion for YPF Luz.
YPF said YPF Luz is Argentina’s second-largest renewable generator and the leader in long-term private renewable power contracts. The purchase would give YPF full control of a unit with US$479 million in yearly adjusted EBITDA, while adding foreign debt whose cost hasn’t been disclosed.
“YPF continues to grow to become a world-class energy company,” Horacio Marín, YPF’s chief executive, said, according to Ámbito. He said the purchase would speed up the company’s growth while keeping its focus on electricity.
Foreign financing and ownership
YPF said it would finance the US$430 million price from abroad. Its filing didn’t identify the lenders or disclose loan terms. The transaction remains subject to conditions precedent.
YPF disclosed the decision in a filing to Argentina’s securities regulator, the National Securities Commission, at 7:57 p.m. Buenos Aires time on October 8, or 6:57 p.m. in New York, after US trading closed. YPF shares were scheduled to trade in New York on Friday, October 9, for the first time since the announcement.
General Electric joined YPF Luz as a shareholder in 2018. In July 2019, GE moved the stake into a venture with China’s state-backed Silk Road Fund, according to law firm Marval O’Farrell Mairal. General Electric later spun off its energy businesses as GE Vernova, which is listed in New York. iProfesional reported in July that GE Vernova and the Silk Road Fund control BNR Power Investments. YPF’s filing identifies BNR Power Investments B.V. as the seller but doesn’t say who owns the vehicle today.
A planned share sale in question
In July, YPF Luz publicly filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission to list shares in New York. The selling shareholder planned to make the sale, and YPF Luz would receive no proceeds; the shares were intended to trade on the NYSE under the ticker YLUZ and in Buenos Aires. YPF hasn’t said whether that listing will proceed, and its acquisition filing doesn’t mention it.
The buyout would remove a Chinese state-backed fund from a major Argentine power company. It comes as a US government delegation visits Argentina that week to advance a US-backed Andes-Atlantic investment corridor, Infobae reported. The Rio Times reported no public comment from GE Vernova or the Silk Road Fund by Friday morning, October 9. YPF also reports material events to the SEC; by early Friday, its latest SEC report was dated Monday, October 5. The article gives no information about YPF Luz workers or employment conditions.