Chubut plans to call a tender next week for the new Comodoro Rivadavia aqueduct, a project intended to expand the region's water supply capacity. The announcement followed a meeting between Governor Ignacio Torres and the national Chief of Cabinet, Diego Santilli, at Casa Rosada.
The agreement provides for moving forward with the decree that will authorise the provincial government to begin the tender process once the project's technical and financial feasibility has been certified. The initiative will be financed through CAF - Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean.
The project includes a new pipeline capable of carrying 5,000 cubic metres per hour between the Cerro Negro and Valle Hermoso pumping stations. The pipe will measure between 1,000 and 1,100 millimetres in diameter and will be integrated into the existing system.
With the new infrastructure, total transported flow will rise from 4,700 to 7,000 cubic metres per hour. The AC66 aqueduct will remain in operation with a capacity of 2,000 cubic metres per hour, while the new pipeline will replace AC99 and provide up to 5,000 cubic metres per hour.
The works include four bypass connections to AC66 to facilitate operations, maintenance and responses to contingencies. AC99 will remain available as backup whenever one of the other pipelines has to be taken out of service.
The Cerro Negro and Valle Hermoso pumping stations will also be upgraded to incorporate the new section and ensure safe operating conditions. The project falls under Law II No. 317, approved by the Chubut Legislature in December 2025, which authorised a public credit operation for the Sustainable Aqueduct Systems Programme.
During the same meeting, Torres and Santilli agreed to establish a negotiating committee to draft the new specifications for the future concession of the Futaleufú Hydroelectric Plant. The province will seek an active role in defining the terms of that process.
