Gasoline Retailing: Regulation of Mobile Stations

The Argentine Secretariat of Energy published Resolution 504/2025 in the Official Gazette on December 12, 2025. This Resolution regulates the retail sale of liquid fuels through mobile service stations.

The Resolution provides that operators of mobile gas stations must register be registered before the Registry of Liquid Fuel Retail Outlets—created through Resolution 1102/2004—and must declare the volumes marketed and their prices through the Fuel Price and Volume Information Module.
 

The Resolution approves two specific types of mobile gas stations:

1. the portable modular gas station, defined as a self-contained and modular installation of the “container” type, which consists of an above-ground tank, pumping system, dispensers, and a control system,
2. the mobile tanker gas station, consisting of a tanker vehicle mounted on a chassis and equipped with a dispensing module, with a maximum capacity of 4,500 liters.

Regarding the portable modular gas station, Annex I of the Resolution establishes the applicable technical and safety requirements, including conditions relating to tank specifications, control systems, dispensers, minimum distances, among other applicable requirements and procedures. It also sets a maximum authorized total capacity of 40 m³. Likewise, the Resolution regulates cases of temporary shutdown (for a maximum of 12 months) and permanent shutdown, establishing obligations for emptying, cleaning, de-energizing, or removing the installation, with certification issued by an authorized auditing entity.

Regarding the mobile tanker gas station, Annex II of the Resolution prohibits retailing under the self-service modality and provides that refueling may only be carried out at authorized terminals and through bottom loading. It also establishes the applicable technical requirements and minimum distances for its operation. Retail activities carried out under this modality are subject to the tax burden applicable to non-exempt zones, due to the impossibility of continuously verifying the territorial scope in which the activity is conducted.

Finally, Annex III approves the safety audit protocols applicable to both modalities, which auditing entities authorized by the Secretariat of Energy must use. These protocols verify compliance with the technical, operational, and safety requirements in Annexes I and II, including specifications regarding tank resistance, distances, leak detection systems, among other aspects. The safety protocols conclude with a certification, determining whether the installation or mobile unit meets the safety conditions required to operate.

Non-compliance with the regulations will be sanctioned following Laws 26022 and 13660. Finally, the Resolution appoints the Undersecretariat of Liquid Fuels as enforcement authority, with powers of authorization, inspection, and control.