A federal appeals court has reversed a massive $16.1 billion judgment against Argentina related to the 2012 seizure of energy company YPF. The ruling overturns a lower court decision that would have forced Argentina to compensate former shareholders of the nationalized oil giant.
A federal appeals court has reversed a massive $16.1 billion ruling against Argentina, throwing out a lower court decision that would have required the South American nation to pay former shareholders of a seized energy company.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York overturned the 2023 decision on Friday, which had ordered Argentina to compensate two investment firms — Petersen Energía and Petersen Energía Inversora — for the government’s takeover of a controlling interest in YPF Energy more than a decade ago.
Argentine President Javier Milei hailed the court’s decision as a major victory for his country. “It’s historic, unthinkable, the greatest judicial victory in national history,” Milei posted on X.
The president also criticized former left-wing leader Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, whose government carried out the YPF takeover in 2012. “Because I’m Milei, I’ll say it the Milei way,” he wrote, adding that his government has “cleaned up the mess” left by the former leader.
Kirchner is currently serving a house arrest sentence that began in 2025, after receiving a six-year prison term for corruption charges.
Last June, U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska had directed Argentina to hand over its 51% majority ownership in YPF as part of the compensation package for the plaintiffs. However, the appeals court suspended that directive two months later.
Milei, who faces challenges in restoring the country’s drained foreign currency reserves and has promised to sell off government-owned enterprises, has repeatedly criticized his political rivals for the legal consequences stemming from the YPF takeover.
The government’s seizure of Argentina’s biggest energy corporation in 2012 further hurt the nation’s reputation internationally by adding to its track record of defaulting on global financial commitments.
The investment firms were able to bring their lawsuit against YPF in American courts because the energy company trades on the New York Stock Exchange.
Following the nationalization, YPF has expanded development of Argentina’s extensive shale gas deposits in the Vaca Muerta formation located in Patagonia. Oil production from Vaca Muerta has grown consistently, hitting nearly 600,000 barrels daily in January, representing about 68% of the country’s total output. YPF announced a $5 billion profit in 2025, marking its best financial performance in a decade.