Despite the complaints of Matías Kulfas, Martín Guzmán has promised that he will continue with the Vaca Muerta pipeline

“Is it okay if I do the standing presentation?” Martín Guzmán said. And then he got up from his chair to begin closing the day in the conference room of the Sheraton Hotel in Retiro, where for an hour he rehearsed to convince owners of major advances companies over the course of the economy have tracked and tried to dispel concerns about inflation, dollar shortages and tax hikes.

Within the Association of Argentine Entrepreneurs (AEA), the organizers of the event, the signal given by the Minister of Economy was appreciated by ensuring that sand will continue with the construction of the pipeline Nestor Kirchner, an opera punctuated in the last hours by the complaints of Matías Kulfas on the alleged irregularities in the tender for pipes to the Techint group, which triggered the government crisis and the forced resignation of the minister.

“Where is economic management concentrated? We are working with absolute commitment to be able to advance this year in a strategic work that is the Néstor Kirchner gas pipeline, the technical definitions that have been adopted for the pipeline tender they are adapted to the needs Argentina and progress is being made to ensure the construction of the pipeline next winter “, assured Guzmán in front of more than 100 executives.

Previously, in one of the panels of the talk for the 20th anniversary of AEA, the owner of Techint, Paolo Rocca, had assured that “There was no directing, no corruption or anything else” in the pipeline specifications. And, after hinting at judicial intervention, he had foreseen it will pay more for gas in 2023. For this the Justice has already summoned Kulfas and the former head of the executive unit of the pipeline, Antonio Pronsato, who resigned 7 days ago.

Without delving into that obstacle, the “immediate” agenda, Guzmán contemplated the announcement of the imminent extension of the current gas planthrough which oil companies receive subsidies for the production and exploration and development of an account a produce liquefied natural gas (LNG) in order to reduce imports of this fuel. He also highlighted the recent easing of stocks for the hydrocarbon and technology sectors.

The moment that caused grimaces and comments among the tables was when the visitor announced that in the next few hours the project made official yesterday will be presented to the Congress for apply an additional 15% tax rate to companies with extraordinary profits of more than $ 1,000 million between 2021 and 2022. “You have to manage unexpected income to embark on a path of shared growththis does not discourage investments “, he reiterated.

In the front row were Eduardo Elsztain (IRSA), Alberto Hojman (BGH), Héctor Magnetto (Grupo Clarín), Luis Pagani (Grupo Arcor), Federico Braun (La Anónima), Martín Migoya (Globant), Carlos Miguens (Grupo Miguens ) and Rocca. Among the audience also Isela Costantini, former head of Aerolineas Argentinas, the former CEO of HSBC, Gabriel Martino, and the former ministers of Economy, Hernán Lacunza and Alfonso Prat Gay.

Later, in a question-and-answer ping pong with the minister, EEA head Jaime Campos pointed out that inflation is “a macroeconomic problem” and that fiscal policy is central. A proposal with which Guzmán accepted, although he warned that “if the state leaves the scene and reduces investments, it is a problem”, that “everything is done in line with the program” agreed with the IMF last March.

There have also been complaints about the increase in Tax burden and restrictions on access to foreign currency. On that plane, the head of the Treasury denied that there are businessmen who pay 165 taxs “Who pays for this?” she fired. And, as for the actions, he stated that the economic system has “costs” and asked Congress to deal with the agro-industrial bill, suspended since November, which provides for tax breaks to relaunch exports.

Guzmán’s landing at the AEA has garnered some criticism among businessmen for its “academic” tone and lack of a “plan”. But it also sowed expectations in the hard core of the entity, where the visit was read as a gesture after the rapprochement began weeks ago, despite Cristina Kirchner’s pressure for Alberto Fernández to “use the pen”, demanding investment from businessmen. and taking care of the dollars