Economy Minister Luis Caputo announced that a United States-based private company plans to invest US$1.2 billion to build a small modular reactor (SMR) at the Atucha nuclear complex. The reactor, an ACR-300, was designed in Argentina.
The project was presented by Meitner Energy, a company with U.S. and Argentine capital. The firm had announced they would build the reactor back in May, although they did not provide further details at the time.
According to local media, 60% of the company is owned by the Ansari Group — a corporation controlled by Iranian businessman Hamid Ansari — while the remaining stake belongs to Black River Technology (BRT), a U.S. firm controlled by Argentine state-owned technology company INVAP.
Designed by INVAP, the ACR-300 would become the first reactor of its kind once completed.
Caputo said Meitner Energy Latam CEO Teófilo Lacroze and Pablo Franzetti, the company’s head of external affairs and new business in Argentina, formally presented the proposal to build the reactor at Atucha using private U.S. capital on Thursday.
“This project will create approximately 2,000 direct jobs during the development, construction, commissioning and operation stages,” Caputo said.
“We continue to work to advance nuclear technology that promotes Argentina’s energy development,” he added.
Importante👇
Junto al secretario de Asuntos Nucleares, @federamosnapoli, mantuvimos una muy buena reunión con Teófilo Lacroze, CEO de Meitner Energy Latam y Pablo Franzetti, Director de Asuntos Externos y Nuevos Negocios de la empresa en Argentina, quienes han presentado una… pic.twitter.com/i1suX5rkuC
— totocaputo (@LuisCaputoAR) July 2, 2026
Super RIGI
Presidential spokesman Adrián Ravier highlighted in an X post that “for the first time, a private company will expand Argentina’s energy infrastructure” and push the country’s technological boundaries.
“The changes spearheaded by President Javier Milei have built the confidence needed for an international company to choose our country to build a 100% privately owned nuclear reactor,” Ravier wrote.
Given the scale of the investment, the project could qualify for the government’s new incentive regime for emerging industries, known as “Super RIGI.” The initiative has already been approved by the Lower House but still requires Senate approval.
Projects approved under the regime are granted 30 years of tax stability and foreign exchange benefits, provided they involve investments of at least US$1 billion in sectors considered new or still in the early stages of development in Argentina.
Privatizing the nuclear sector
Argentina’s public nuclear sector had previously been developing the CAREM-25 SMR, the country’s first nuclear power reactor designed entirely in Argentina.
Construction was halted when the project was reportedly about 85% complete following layoffs and funding cuts.
The National Atomic Energy Commission (CNEA, by its Spanish acronym) later said the CAREM-25 project was not commercially viable.
The Milei administration instead shifted its focus to INVAP, which had patented the ACR-300 design in the U.S., a move critics viewed as part of a broader push toward privatizing Argentina’s nuclear sector.
In March 2025, the government announced plans to build four INVAP-designed ACR-300 reactors at Atucha, but no further progress had been made public until now.
The Meitner Energy announcement comes just days after the government dismissed 61 CNEA employees, including highly specialized professionals and technicians.
