YPF Borrows US$1.2 Billion, the Largest Argentine Issue in Eleven Years
ARGENTINA · ENERGY
Key Facts
- —The issue YPF placed US$1.2 billion of international debt on 9 September.
- —The terms A 7.55 percent coupon, an effective yield of 7.85 percent, maturing June 2035.
- —The record The largest international placement by an Argentine company in eleven years.
- —The plan behind it YPF chief executive Horacio Marín announced a US$154.1 billion multi-year investment programme on 8 September.
- —What is in it An oil hub at around US$25 billion, Argentina LNG at 12 million tonnes a year for around US$51 billion, a further liquefaction train at around US$25 billion.
- —The target Operated production from 400,000 barrels a day to 2 million, and sixth place among world LNG exporters.
A company that defaulted inside living memory just borrowed US$1.2 billion for nine years at 7.55 percent. That number is the story.
YPF placed US$1.2 billion of international debt on Tuesday, the largest bond sale by an Argentine corporate issuer since 2015, a day after unveiling an investment programme it prices at US$154.1 billion.
The Terms
The notes carry a 7.55 percent coupon and priced to an effective yield of 7.85 percent, maturing in June 2035 for a nine-year term.
Argentine financial press describes it as the largest international issue by an Argentine company in the past eleven years. For a sovereign whose corporates have spent much of the past decade locked out of international markets or paying punitive spreads, the coupon is the more meaningful figure than the size.
The Programme It Funds
On 8 September, chief executive Horacio Marín set out a multi-year investment plan totalling US$154.1 billion across projects registered under Argentina’s RIGI incentive regime.
The components include an oil hub at roughly US$25 billion, Argentina LNG at 12 million tonnes a year for roughly US$51 billion, and an additional liquefaction train at roughly US$25 billion, with further Vaca Muerta projects on top.
The stated ambition is to lift YPF’s operated production from 400,000 barrels a day to 2 million, and to make Argentina the world’s sixth largest LNG exporter.
This is YPF’s own plan, not a national investment programme, a distinction that is easy to lose in the headline figure. A final investment decision on the LNG element is expected in November, and the plan does not carry a stated completion date.
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What to Hold Against It
US$154 billion is more than a third of Argentina’s annual GDP. Announced investment plans in Argentine energy have a long history of arriving late, arriving smaller, or not arriving.
The bond is different in kind. It is money actually raised at a rate actually agreed, from investors who priced nine years of Argentine corporate risk at under 8 percent. That is a market judgment rather than a corporate ambition.
The two are related but they are not the same fact, and the second is the one that can be checked.
More: Argentina news in English, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much did YPF raise?
US$1.2 billion, placed on 9 September 2026.
What are the terms?
A 7.55 percent coupon and a 7.85 percent effective yield, maturing June 2035.
Why does it matter?
It is the largest international bond sale by an Argentine company in eleven years.
What is the US$154 billion figure?
YPF’s own multi-year investment plan, announced 8 September, covering RIGI-registered projects centred on Vaca Muerta and LNG. It is not a national programme.
What is the production target?
Operated output rising from 400,000 barrels a day to 2 million, with Argentina becoming the sixth largest LNG exporter.
Sources: El Cronista, Infobae, LM Neuquén.
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