Argentina’s national state oil company YPF just cannot function in a stable and foreseeable manner, an apprehension that was rekindled by Guillermo Nielsen stepping down from his post of company president merely a year after taking its helm. Seemingly, the decision was taken amicably as Nielsen claimed his decision originated in a new challenge offered to him, namely that of becoming Argentina’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia. The circumstances of Nielsen’s departure, however, point to more structural forces compelling the erstwhile Finance secretary to quit YPF – forces that could potentially jeopardize the accomplishments of 2020; a year that was exorbitantly difficult for both the state and oil producers, yet managed to kickstart a couple of genuinely positive policy shifts. Bloomberg has reported that the main reason behind Nielsen’s ouster is his marginalization from high-level decision making within the company, alluding to Vice President Kirchner expanding her influence again. In […]