Federal Government Declares Dredging Activities as Public Service and Introduces Measures Regarding the Parana-Paraguay Waterway

The Federal Government published Emergency Decree 699/2024 in the Official Gazette on August 6, 2024, making important changes to the federal management policy of navigable waterways.

Firstly, this regulation declared as public services the activities of dredging, re-dredging, maintenance, signaling, beaconing, and hydrological control of navigable waterways under national jurisdiction. Among its grounds, Decree 699/2024 highlights that this measure seeks to reassure the continuity and regularity of the services regarding interjurisdictional navigation, guaranteeing fair competition and the supervision of natural and legal monopolies, and striving for the quality and efficiency of public services.

Likewise, Decree 699/2024 stresses the importance of the Waterway between kilometer 1,238 of the Parana River up to the Natural Deep-Water Zone in the outer La Plata River (Hidrovía) for the development of regional economies, highlighting its strategic relevance and its role for regional and international transport and trade. In view of this, the Executive Branch expressed the need to recognize the character of public service of these tasks, regardless of whether they are carried out directly or indirectly by the Government.

The enforcement authority Decree 699/2024 designated is the Undersecretariat of Ports and Waterways, under the Secretariat of Transport of the Ministry of Economy.

Secondly within the powers granted through Law 27742, the President ordered the full dissolution of the Waterway Control and Management Entity (ECOVINA), a decentralized body with provincial representation created by means of Decree 556/2021 to intervene in the management of the waterway. Accordingly, it was ordered that the entity’s functions, budget, and personnel be transferred to the Undersecretariat of Ports and Waterways.

Subsequently,  Decree 709/2024 was published in the Official Gazette on August 9, 2024, whereby the Executive Branch delegated to the Undersecretariat the power to call and award the national and international public bid for the concession of the modernization, expansion, operation, and maintenance of the signaling system and dredging, re-dredging, and maintenance of the waterway under the modalities of public service concession or public works concession.

As for the concession contract in force between the Federal Government and its Port Authority (Administración General de Puertos Sociedad del Estado), it was established that the latter may continue collecting the corresponding toll until the awardee or awardees of the public bid take over the concession. On the other hand, the Undersecretariat was instructed to carry out a comprehensive review and modify the concession contract subscribed with the Argentine Port Authority to facilitate the transfer of the concession to the awardee.

The enactment of the complementary regulations or administrative decisions that should implement Decrees 677/2024 and 709/2024 should follow. Particularly, to expedite the launching of the public bid for the concession of the Hidrovía, providing conditions to promote concurrence and equality among possible offerors, with the ultimate aim of ensuring the best service at the lowest possible cost for users.