A dramatic ruling by a U.S. court ordering Argentina to hand over the 51% stake it holds in state energy firm YPF has cast a shadow over the country's plans for its huge Vaca Muerta shale formation and hopes to return to global markets.

US judge orders state to turn over its controlling stake in state-run oil company YPF SA as partial payment of a US$16-billion court judgment.

The turnover of the shares comes after a Manhattan judge ruled in 2023 that Argentina owed $16 billion to former minority stakeholders after it expropriated shares in the country’s biggest oil and gas company.