An undoubted reference point in the sector, Martínez de Hoz & Rueda handles the full range of industry issues concerning exploration, production, transportation, distribution and marketing. ‘Its lawyers’ years of experience in the sector makes this firm unique in the market’, according to sources, who also suggest it as being at the forefront of green hydrogen developments as the industry confronts energy transition. Operating from offices in Buenos Aires and Neuquén, the team provides a stand out offering as regards hydrocarbon concession extension agreements and renegotiations, and also advises major international gas producers operating in Argentina on multi-party, multi-contract commercial arbitrations arising out of cross-border transactions. ‘One of the best Argentine lawyers in O&G – if not the best‘, José Alfredo Martínez De Hoz is known for his profound expertise in both hydrocarbons matters and associated arbitration; he co-leads with fellow veteran oil, gas and electricity specialist, Pablo Rueda, and transactional and regulatory specialist Tomás Lanardonne, who heads up the Neuquén office and also handles arbitral and litigious matters. Associates Marcos Blanco (oil and gas, renewable energy/electricity, project finance, and M&A, and litigation & arbitration), and Valeria Celesti, who is fully dedicated to hydrocarbons matters, are also noted.

Handling exploration, production, transportation and refining matters throughout the oil and gas sector, the entire team at Bomchil demonstrates ‘outstanding technical capacity and professional solidity‘. The firm’s offering combines longstanding strength in administrative law and economic regulation with experience handling inbound and outbound investments and the negotiation of up, mids and downstream deals, as well as power, renewables and energy transition matters. A towering figure in the sector, regulatory, oil and gas and M&A specialist Pablo Alliani  leads the team. He is flanked by deeply experienced fellow partners Fernando Brunelli, whose forte is advising clients on oil-and-gas bidding processes, farm-ins , M&A and contracts; and Cristian Galansky, who focuses on administrative law and energy regulatory frameworks, and also leads the practice group’s litigious (including administrative) and arbitral activity. Additionally, Fermín Caride is active on banking, finance and capital market matters in the sector, while María Inés Corrá – who is primarily engaged on the power side of the practice – also brings her administrative Law, economic regulation and international arbitration expertise to bear. A strong associate line is led by seniors Brenda Saluzzi, Matías Debarbieri  and Andrea Lovfall.

Led by oil-and-gas expert Javier Rodríguez Galli, Bruchou & Funes de Rioja's practice ('responsible, serious, dedicated') focuses on M&A, joint ventures, strategic alliance and regulatory advice in the sector. The team has ‘the experience of having worked in oil companies’, and brings this to bear for international companies interested in entering the Argentine market, particularly large upstream E&P companies with interests in the development of unconventional shale hydrocarbons in the country. Galli's remit includes the full range of acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures and strategic alliance transactions, corporate and institutional matters, and more recently the legal and regulatory matters related to energy transition. Fellow partner Santiago Balbi is similarly strong on general corporate advice, cross-border transactions and structuring private equity projects; and recent matters saw him and Rodríguez Galli co-lead advice to Vista Oil & Gas on the design of an innovative $250m contractual farm in by Trafigura. At senior associate level, Nicolás Dulce frequently works with clients including Petronas, Equinor and Vista, recently assisting the latter acquire the Aguada Federal and Bandurria Norte fields; while Matías Leguizamón has particular experience in the mid-stream sector and hydrocarbons transportation matters.

Marval O’Farrell Mairal is recommended for combining ‘great knowledge and professional experience with an excellent understanding of the business and the needs of the client’. The firm provides ‘extensive experience in the energy sector, as well as a professional team with great experience and reputation, and a panel of relevant clients’. The core strengths of the practice include large transactions, oil and gas sector disputes and arbitration, regulatory and administrative matters the length of the hydrocarbons supply chain - from E&P to mid and downstream, and increasingly, decarbonization and green hydrogen projects. Moreover, the full-service firm can bring multidisciplinary expertise to the table, and demonstrates a particularly strong track record in the natural gas market. Oil-and-gas specialist Francisco Macías spearheads the practice and can call on the expertise of experienced associate Jimena Montoya, who focuses on oil, gas and environmental matters. The April-2022 departure of former practice co-head Ricardo Beller to join Miami-based PAG Law, was undoubtedly a loss, but the firm has moved with its characteristic speed to re-stock its partner-level bench with the hire of hydrocarbons specialist Soledad Riera, formerly head of legal (for liquids, telecommunications and new business) at Trasportadora de Gas del Sur; and the promotion of Agustina Ranieri, who in addition to her energy sector know-how has expertise in banking and finance matters – effective June and August 2022, respectively. The practice group also has recourse to 40-year veteran Arturo Pera, who formerly worked in house at Total and current vice-president of the Argentine Association of Energy Law and Mineral Resources.

Beccar Varela‘s multidisciplinary practice has built an impressive track record in the hydrocarbons sector, representing clients throughout the industry, notably on upstream exploration matters and downstream commercialisation and distribution, along with service suppliers, offshore projects and energy-use efficiency initiatives. It is particularly experienced in sector-specific agreements such as farm-ins/outs, production sharing, joint ventures, EPC and operating agreements, and also advises on bidding processes, the drafting of concession agreement and the renegotiation of concession contracts. On the regulatory front, it works at both national and provincial levels, as well as on cross-border deals, and assisting with market entry strategies. Energy specialist (power and hydrocarbons) José Carlos Cueva has been a partner at the firm for 20 years and has profound experience of all aspects of the oil and gas sector, including  economic regulation and public bidding processes; he co-leads the team with finance specialist Roberto Fortunati, who has similarly vast knowledge of the oil-and-gas industry, his past experience including time spent in house at Amoco Oil Company. The practice was further boosted by the spring-2021 arrival of Ricardo Castañeda; while primarily oriented toward the electricity segment, he also undertakes hydrocarbons work and brings additional M&A, corporate law and project finance experience to the team. However, former senior associate Gonzalo Viña moved in house as senior legal counsel at Fortescue Future Industries in November 2021.

Mitrani Caballero & Ruiz Moreno Abogados' practice advises domestic and foreign clients across the spectrum of oil and gas issues, with key strengths being structuring upstream assignments, farm-outs and downstream corporate M&A, as well as assisting midstream developers construct infrastructure pipelines. It also assists with the structuring, drafting, and negotiation of contracts; representation before national and provincial administrations, and has strong regulatory expertise. Practice head Mariana Ardizzone is an expert in energy law and combines first class service standards with ‘great knowledge of the industry’. Other key figures in the practice group include María Recondo, whose practice straddles corporate matters and energy and natural resources - her prior experience includes time at both Tecpetrol and YPF; and Horacio Ruiz Moreno, who heads the firm's administrative law and business regulation practice - he has acted as the statutory controller of entities such as Ecogas, Gas Natural Ban and Transportadora de Gas del Sur. On the corporate and finance fronts, Julio Martínez has deep knowledge of transactional and financing matters across the entire energy sector, as does Diego Parise (who led on Raízen's $950m acquisition of Shell's downstream assets back in 2018), while Aixa Sureda is more fully focused on energy sector M&A.

O'Farrell has a solid reputation in the hydrocarbons arena, built on the back of its participation in the sector since the privatization processes of the 1990s and the various subsequent economic and regulatory scenarios endured by the industry. More recently the practice has established a track record in the development of unconventional oil-and-gas resources, including in Vaca Muerta, and the team can also draw on the firm’s wider experience in infrastructure, public utility and procurement matters, to assist with bid processes, transactions and regulatory matters – particularly concerning tariff review procedures. Four key partners head the practice: senior partner Uriel F. O'Farrell (corporate work, M&A and energy transactions, regulation and disputes); economic regulations specialist Agustin Siboldi  (hydrocarbons exploration, concession, exploitation and distribution; gas production, transport, distribution and commercialization); María Agustina Fanelli Evans (advisory on regulatory, administrative and constitutional matters; renegotiation of public contracts, tariff claims and litigious matters); and Juan Pablo Fratantoni   (M&A, joint ventures, energy-sector investment, foreign investments and company law). At associate level, senior María Fortuna  and intermediate Ana Belén Micciarelli  both advise on public law and economic regulation; however, Nicolás Vázquez moved in house at HSBC Bank.

With broad experience ranging from strategic transactions to innovative investments, Pérez Alati, Grondona, Benites & Arntsen’s practice is noted for its specialisation, commercial vision and international experience. Key strengths of the practice include due diligence, acquisitions, financings, securities issuance and regulatory matters across the energy sector. Francisco Javier Romano (to whom much of the practice's commercial vision can be ascribed) can draw on some 25 years’ experience in the sector and was formerly in house at Chevron for over a decade; he co-leads the team with fellow senior-partner, corporate and cross-border financing specialist Alan Arnsten, whose industry focus includes energy – he also has noteworthy infrastructure M&A experience. Additional energy-sector transactional capability is provided by Tomás Pérez Alati, while environmental law input comes from Nicole Jaureguiberry; both were raised to the partnership in January 2022. At associate level, senior Joaquín Ojeda Goncalves advises on regulatory and administrative matters -primarily regulatory compliance, governmental and public affairs, international contracts and operations, environment, mining and natural resources. The firm also maintains an alliance with the Neuquén-based Brillo Abogados to further its presence in the province.

Combining expertise from multiple disciplines, Alfaro-Abogados’ practice handles a range of matters in the oil-and-gas sector related to the implementation and development of projects. Active from the exploitation and development stages though to distribution and the sale of products, the practice covers the full array of work in the sector. Senior partner Carlos Alfaro represents national and multinational corporations, lending institutions and banks on the financing of large infrastructure projects. He heads the team in conjunction with Sebastian Rodrigo, whose experience focuses on corporate, regulatory, reorganisations, aviation and cross-border transactions.

Best known for its strength in the mining sector, Allende & Brea has nevertheless been re-building its presence in the oil-and-gas segment, where it advises clients on both corporate and regulatory matters. The six-strong, multidisciplinary team has extensive industry knowledge – particularly regarding contractual, regulatory, environmental, tax and financing issues – along with profound experience of transactions in heavily-regulated sectors. The practice is led by senior partner Florencia Heredia who has expertise across the energy and natural resources sector (including forestry and fisheries), as well as on environmental matters and corporate sustainability. Additional partner involvement comes from Marcos Patrón Costas who advises local and foreign clients on cross-border M&A and project-finance transactions, with a primary focus on the energy industry. At associate level, Agostina Martinez has a specialisation in international oil and gas law, contracts and negotiations.

An established play in the oil-and-gas sector, Nicholson y Cano Abogados has participated in a number of novel mandates in the sector, including the first joint ventures and financings in the shale segment (Loma Campana and El Orejano) and the structuring of Aleph as the first independent midstream company in Argentina. The practice advises throughout the hydrocarbons supply chain, from upstream (where its clients include YPF, Quatar Petroleum, Chevron and BP), through midstream (Aleph, TGS), to downstream (YPF, BP Castrol, Raizen, Trafigura) and the oil-services segment (Schlumberger Group, Perez Companc Energía). Practice heads Nicolás Perkins and Marcelo Lamesa have extensive experience of the energy sector - particularly matters such as farm in and farm out contracts, asset acquisitions and the assignment of concession rights - and work into the sector from the corporate and banking/finance sides, respectively. Mariana Guzian rounds out the senior team: she too has a corporate and energy sector profile, particularly as regards cross-border investments and project finance and loans. In addition, the team can also call on supplementary practice areas including its long-established environmental practice (under the leadership of Horacio Payá), and its significant business and human rights practice (directed by Alfredo Vítolo), as well as labour, litigation, tax and antitrust.