At the request of the government, federal judge in administrative litigation, Enrique Lavié Pico, appointed Wednesday an intervener to examine the renegotiation of the motorway concession contract signed between the company Autopistas del Sol (Ausol) and the administration of Mauricio Macri in 2018.
Also, it was organized the suspension the compensation mechanism for the recovery of an alleged debt of nearly US $ 500 million.
In the same resolution, the magistrate ordered “the preventive ban on the distribution of dividends and to modify, in any legal form, the composition of the share capital and the share positions of the company Ausol SA “.
Thus, Judge Lavié Pico accepted “partially” the precautionary measure requested last month by the National Roads Directorate, which depends on the Minister of Public Works, Gabriel Katopodis, a request that the court had already raised days ago declaring itself competent to understand it.
The auditor will be the accountant José Luis Perrone, and his task will be “to supervise, inspect and control the renegotiation of the aforementioned concession agreement, being in charge of the supervision and control of all acts of routine administration that may affect the normal provision of the public service which is the subject of the concession.
“This provision is adopted until the issue of a definitive sentence on the file”, specified the resolution.
In September Alberto Fernández signed the decree – published in the Official Gazette – which initiates the necessary legal actions to declare the extensions null and void of the concessions of the Panamericana and Acceso Oeste. It provides for the presentation of a process and a precautionary measure so that they return to the hands of the state.
The aim is to avoid the increase in toll prices, which are considered “inevitable” in the current situation, as vice-president Cristina Kirchner intended.
“In our opinion, these are absolutely overwhelming contracts, which have generated economic damage for the national State and for users. The action will be carried out by the Litigation-Administrative Justice by the Ministry of Public Works”, said the President .
He spoke of “harmful action” in the extension of concessions made in 2018 by the decrees of Mauricio Macri’s government.
“We have verified that the contracts were disadvantageous for the users of the motorway and caused enormous damage to the state,” said the managing director.
“If we had allowed the contract to apply, a current Autopista del Sol user who pays close to 100 pesos would pay 1,800 pesos. This is what would have happened,” added the president.
Fernández was accompanied by Gabriel Katopodis, Minister of Public Works.
Source: Clarin
