Argentine government implements gas, electricity rate increases in February

BUENOS AIRES, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Argentina will raise residential gas tariffs by an average of 16.86% in February, while electricity prices in the Buenos Aires metropolitan area will increase by average of 3.59%, the government announced Friday.

The increases stem from a new unified gas pricing formula that aims to prevent seasonal spikes during winter months when consumption is highest.

The increases result from inflation-linked adjustments, application of a new subsidy scheme and the unified gas pricing system.

The most common residential gas category (R1), representing 42% of users or nearly 4 million households, will see increases of 3,000 pesos or less. About 20% of users will face increases below 1,000 pesos, the government said.

Argentina libertarian President Javier Milei has sought to deregulate the energy sector and has allowed long-controlled prices to rise.