Catamarca is advancing in the transformation of Catamarca Minera y Energética, CAMYEN, from a State-Owned Company to a Sole Shareholder Corporation. The project obtained partial approval from the Senate and is heading for consideration in the Chamber of Deputies. The modification aims to adjust the company to the national framework and clarify its ability to sell, transfer, encumber, or dispose of the mining rights it manages.
The patrimonial faculty is the core of the reform. The new CAMYEN SAU may hold properties and rights granted by the province or lawfully acquired, and dispose of them when an operation proves beneficial. Although the creation law already contained an authorization, the Government argued that the diverse interpretations limited its use and placed the state-owned company at a disadvantage compared to companies with greater contractual freedom.
The Executive compared the change with regimes of other provinces. He mentioned Impulsa Mendoza Sostenible, JEMSE in Jujuy, EMSE in La Rioja, and REMSA in Salta, which can transfer rights or partner with third parties. The stated objective is to expand negotiation tools to attract capital and enhance the value of mining areas; that authorization does not mean that all properties will be sold or that a buyer already exists.
The scale of the portfolio explains the scope of the discussion. CAMYEN manages more than 450 properties linked to copper, gold, lithium, and other resources. More than 300 already have concession resolutions for prospecting or mining permits, while the rest are in advanced processing. The preference of ownership over declared vacant claims contributed to forming this inventory.
The conversion also responds to DNU 70/2023, which repealed the Ley Nacional 20.705 of State Companies and provided for the transformation of state-owned enterprises into joint-stock companies governed by Ley General de Sociedades. Since the Province will be the sole shareholder, the Government considers that the single-member structure reduces bureaucratic burdens without changing the public ownership of the company.
The project adds a portal for active transparency. The inventory of properties, current contracts of assignment, transfer, or association, and the approved financial statements must be published. The next step will be the vote in the Chamber of Deputies and, if applicable, the corporate implementation. Until that process is completed, CAMYEN should not be presented as an already operating SAU nor the reform as an authorization executed for a specific sale.
