The race to lead Argentina's National Gas and Electricity Regulatory Entity (ENRGE) is entering a decisive stage. This week marks the deadline for the application process launched by the Secretariat of Energy, and Energía Estratégica has identified seven names that are being considered or are emerging as potential candidates for the presidency .
Federico Veller, Mario Cairella, Carlos Casares, Marcelo Nachón, Marcelo Corda, Damián Andino, and Fernando Mirotti have all been mentioned in discussions within the political sector regarding the succession of Néstor Lamboglia. This does not imply that all of them have formally announced their candidacy; they are simply potential candidates identified through this publication's journalistic investigation.
The selection process will have several stages. Once registration closes, a Selection Committee will be formed, which will have ten business days to review the candidates' backgrounds and prepare a shortlist, and another five business days to interview them and submit a reasoned shortlist of three candidates . The Energy Secretariat, the Ministry of Economy, the Executive Branch, and Congress will then be involved.
Federico Veller has led the Undersecretariat of Hydrocarbons of the Nation since March 11 of this year, after his time as Undersecretary of Liquid and Gaseous Fuels from October 2024.
This arrival coincided with other movements within the area, such as the appointment of Eduardo Hollidge as general manager of CAMMESA (now vice president) and of Osvaldo Rolando as administrator of the now defunct National Electricity Regulatory Entity ( ENRE - Rolando resigned in July 2025).
The official is a chemical engineer with more than 25 years of experience, including more than 20 years at YPF , where he reached the position of Executive Director of Chemistry, and later he was CEO of Profertil until 2022.
His name is among the top contenders to head the ENRGE, as he reports directly to the Secretary of Energy and Mining Coordination, Daniel González , and is one of the profiles with support within the national energy structure, so he has already submitted the documentation to participate in the process .
Another name that this news portal was able to find out is that of Mario Cairella , who held the vice presidency of the Wholesale Electricity Market Management Company (CAMMESA) on two occasions, the last being between May 2024 and March 2025.
At that time, his departure occurred in a context of internal differences over measures adopted for the summer of 2025 and the reform of the Wholesale Electricity Market (MEM) that was already being prepared by the Secretariat of Energy and which was subsequently implemented in the guidelines of Resolution SE 21/2025 and Resolution SE 400/2025, in order to advance with the liberalization of marketing and competition in supply, with greater prominence of the contracts of the Term Market (MAT) .
Carlos Casares is another profile with direct experience in regulation. He was the administrator of the former National Gas Regulatory Entity (ENARGAS) from January 2024 until his resignation in January 2026 and had already attempted to join the leadership of the unified agency.
Casares had previously run for both the presidency and vice-presidency of ENRGE and was even shortlisted as a candidate for the position . However, the Executive Branch ultimately chose Lamboglia, who was then the ENRE's administrator.
His departure from ENARGAS came just days after he was left out of the board of directors for the unified agency. But until his resignation, he had been one of the top officials in the energy sector who had remained since the beginning of the La Libertad Avanza administration .
In the gas sector, Marcelo Nachón also appears, who took over ENARGAS in January 2026 after Casares left and after being part of the agency's Advisory Council since July 2024.
The former National Director of Hydrocarbon Economics (2004-2007) participated in the development of regulatory frameworks, the expansion of the Perito Moreno Gas Pipeline, and the five-year tariff review . He had also been included as one of the three members of the proposal submitted by the National Government to the Senate for the new authorities of ENRGE (National Energy Regulatory Entity).
Another name that is strongly rumored to be running, according to sources close to Energía Estratégica, is Marcelo Corda , current vice president of Energía Argentina SA (ENARSA), who joined the state-owned company along with Tristán Socas after several years at Edelap, a distributor of the DESA Group.
Corda arrived at ENARSA between the end of September and the beginning of October 2024 with the support of presidential advisor Santiago Caputo and, in addition to holding the vice presidency, he effectively served as the company's general manager.
It is worth remembering that ENARSA was involved in the recent privatization of Transener , the country's main electricity transmission company, by the consortium made up of Genneia and the Edison group, for an amount close to USD 356 million.
This operation was part of the privatization process of assets and activities of Energía Argentina SA , in line with the official strategy of reducing public participation in the sector.
Damián Andino , for his part, brings experience in power generation. He chaired Centrales de la Costa Atlántica (a state-owned company of the Province of Buenos Aires, now Buenos Aires Energía - BAESA) between July 2017 and June 2019; and previously worked for a decade at AES, where he held, among other positions, the Commercial and Operations, Planning and Service Quality management roles.
During his time at the provincial power company, he spearheaded the construction of a 38 MW wind farm and the development of a 141 MW thermal power plant using MAN engines . Simultaneously, asset availability increased from 65% to 92%.
Among the names being mentioned is Fernando Mirotti , owner of Energy Traders, a company that develops energy solutions based on the analysis of production processes and alternative supply structures according to their requirements.
How will the presidency be defined?
Beyond the names currently circulating, the closing of the competition will determine who actually submitted their applications . After the closing date, the Government will form an unpaid Selection Committee , which will analyze the applications and compile a shortlist of candidates.
From there, you will have another five business days to conduct personal interviews and prepare a well-founded shortlist proposal .
The Energy Secretariat will receive the results and forward the shortlist to the Ministry of Economy along with its recommendation. The Executive Branch will then select the candidate .
However, before formalizing the appointment, he must communicate the grounds for his decision to a bicameral commission of Congress, which will have 30 calendar days to issue a ruling , although its opinion will not be binding on the Executive.
If the committee is not formed within ten calendar days after receiving the proceedings, the grounds must be sent directly to the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Martín Menem , and to the president of the Senate, Victoria Villarruel .
Thirty calendar days after that communication , the Executive Branch will be authorized to finalize the appointment.
The closing of applications will thus mark the first concrete filter. Veller currently appears among the best-positioned candidates , while Cairella, Casares, Nachón, Corda, Andino, and Mirotti are among the names being mentioned in the sector, regarding an appointment with direct impact on the future regulation of Argentina's electricity and gas markets.