José Luis Manzano (born March 9, 1956) is an
Argentine
Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...
businessman and former politician.
He is currently a partner in the second largest
multimedia group in his country,
Grupo América
Grupo América, formerly known as Grupo UNO Medios and also referred to as the Vila-Manzano Group, is a multimedia company in Argentina. It was founded by Mendoza-based entrepreneurs Daniel Vila and José Luis Manzano, a former politician and bu ...
, and has investments in several economic sectors, including energy, wine, and clothing. During his time in Argentine politics, Manzano was known as a power broker and negotiator and one of the architects of the success of the Menem government.
Manzano holds a medical degree and completed postgraduate work in the United States. Early in his career, he served in Argentina's
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
, later serving as
Minister of the Interior
An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...
in the cabinet of President
Carlos Saúl Menem
Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) served as the 50th president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years (from 1990 to 2001 and agai ...
.
In 1996, Manzano co-founded Grupo América, now Argentina’s second-largest media company, with 49 outlets across radio, TV, digital media, and print.
Manzano owns businesses in other sectors including oil and gas. He also serves as the president of Integra Capital, an international investment firm.
Education and academic activities
Manzano earned a medical degree from the
National University of Cuyo
The National University of Cuyo (, UNCuyo) is the largest center of higher education in the province of Mendoza, Argentina.
As of 2005, the university had 12 academic schools in the city of Mendoza and a delegation in the city of San Rafael (pr ...
, specializing in occupational health. He later studied in the United States as a visiting scholar at
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...
and the
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Es ...
. He has lectured internationally and received various awards.
He is also president of the Postgraduates Foundation of the Congress, in
Mendoza, where he was a former member of its administration board.
Business activities
Manzano owns and runs a number of businesses in a variety of industries. He often travels around the world, speaking at conferences and panels.
In April 2025, Integra Tec, owned by investors Manzano and Mauricio Filiberti, acquired a 99.3% stake in Telefónica del Perú. The transaction followed the bankruptcy filing of the company’s Spanish parent firm earlier that year. The deal involved capital contributions exceeding 1.5 billion soles and aims to maintain services for the company’s 12 million customers. It also includes plans to restructure debt and develop a sustainable business model.
The telecommunications sector in Peru is undergoing significant changes following the acquisition. Manzano has committed an initial investment of US$68 million and has stated that he expects the company to become profitable by March 2026. As part of efforts to address the company’s financial challenges, Manzano is pursuing a structured bankruptcy process, including negotiating the company’s outstanding tax obligations with Peru’s tax authority, the Superintendencia Nacional de Administración Tributaria (Sunat).
Manzano has indicated that employee and supplier rights will be upheld during the restructuring. His plans for the company include improvements in service quality, technological innovation, expansion of 5G networks, and continued deployment of cell phone towers. More than 1,000 towers have been installed under the new management. He has also emphasized the company’s strong brand recognition as a strategic asset.
Mining and energy expansion (2023–2024)
In recent years, Manzano expanded his investments in Argentina’s mining and energy sectors. In 2024, he acquired lithium-rich acreage in northern Argentina and Brazil’s lithium valley, in order to mine for elements critical for the global
clean energy
Energy is sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." Definitions of sustainable energy usually look at its effects on the environment, the economy, and s ...
transition.
Additionally, he revived a potash-fertilizer project in Mendoza, aiming to boost agricultural exports and domestic production.
Manzano also expanded his presence in the Peruvian mining sector by acquiring Volcan Cia Minera SAA from Glencore Plc, which expanded Integra Capital’s presence in South America’s resource markets.
Integra Capital
Manzano owns Integra Capital, an investment firm focused on energy and mining. It has funded major projects, including oil exploration in the Golfo San Jorge Basin, Patagonia. Pipelines, electricity generation, and industrial- and personal-use water projects are also within the company's scope of investments. In the power sector, Integra put together a large investment program of nearly $100 million dedicated to modernization and creation of an intelligent grid.
In 2024, Manzano expanded his business interests into the mining sector through Integra. He acquired lithium-rich acreage in northern Argentina and Brazil’s lithium valley, investing in minerals expected to be important for the global transition to clean energy. He also revived a previously-abandoned potash-fertilizer project in Mendoza, part of an effort to focus on resources projected to be in demand for the next 50 to 100 years.
Integra Capital also acquired Peruvian miner Volcan Cia Minera SAA from
Glencore Plc, further increasing Manzano’s presence in the sector.
Media
Resettling in Argentina in 1996, Manzano and entrepreneur
Daniel Vila created
UNO Medios, also known as Grupo Uno (Group One) or Group Vila-Manzano. They also established Supercanal Holding AS, now valued at more than $800 million.
Grupo Uno, in partnership with businessman
Francisco de Narváez
Francisco de Narváez Steuer (born 22 September 1953 in Bogotá), known as El Colorado or Pancho, is a Colombian-born naturalized Argentine businessman, politician who ran for governor of Buenos Aires Province on the Unión PRO ballot in the 20 ...
, acquired Buenos Aires TV channel
América 2
The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...
. Manzano and Vila expanded Grupo Uno into Argentina’s second-largest media group, controlling key channels in the Cuyo region by the late 1990s.
Today Grupo Uno consists of 40 media outlets throughout the country, including press, radio, television, and digital enterprises. Among the major channels is América 2, located in Buenos Aires, whose operation license was renewed during President
Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Carlos Kirchner Ostoić (; 25 February 195027 October 2010) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the president of Argentina from 2003 to 2007. A member of the Justicialist Party, he previously served as Governor of Sa ...
's administration. Through all of its media outlets, Grupo Uno reaches around 25 million people in Argentina. In addition, it is also a service supplier of Triple Play (a provider of telephone, Internet and cable television services) through the company Supercanal. Some 450,000 people in 14 Argentinian provinces subscribe to its services.
The Vila-Manzano group also bought into cable operations abroad. In 1977 it acquired 25% of Procono in Spain, and in 1997 formed Supercanal Cable Spain. The group also purchased VVC, Alvarez & Alvarez, Video Selimn, MEG, Electro Audio and Imagem Teresopolis, CATV Sat LITD, and Televisao Spectrum Systems, all in Brazil. In addition, the group owns cable operations in Bolivia and owns the Dominican television Network
Supercanal. The group owns or has owned part of the magazine ''Primera Fila'', the newspapers ''
La Capital de Rosario'' and ''New Time, Paraná'', and various radio stations.
Grupo Uno has 28 licenses between AM, FM and open television broadcasting. Manzano and Vila control channel América and its cable TV channel
América24, La Red radio and newspaper networks including La Capital del Rosario and Diario UNO in Entre Rios, Mendoza and Santa Fe. With its extensive network of media services, the company reaches about 25 million people in Argentina and thus constitutes the second largest multimedia group in the country.
As one of the key owners of Grupo Uno, Manzano led the partnership with
China Watch
''China Daily'' ( zh, s=中国日报, p=Zhōngguó Rìbào) is an English-language daily newspaper owned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party.
Overview
''China Daily'' has the widest print circulation of any ...
, a media outlet of news and analysis about China's business, society and culture. China Watch became the first Spanish-spoken media about China.
Holdings
As of 2001, the Vila-Manzano group, through Supercanal Holding SA and other firms, controlled dozens of cable-TV enterprises across Argentina.
The group also owns or has owned the magazine Primera Fila, in Mendoza; the daily newspapers La Capital and El Ciudadano, Rosario; el periódico Nueva Hora de Paraná; Canal 7 in Mendoza, Canal 8, Radio AM Calingasta and Radio FM Nuestra, in San Juan; Megavisión SA (Siempre Mujer) and Radio Rivadavia, among others.
Energy and oil
Manzano and Vila are also leaders in the electricity sector through Edemsa, a private-public company that provides electricity to Mendoza province. The two men created Andes Energía, a Latin American energy group dedicated to the exploration, development and production of conventional and non-conventional oil and gas. The company operates in Argentina with 24 licenses. In Colombia, it currently has 11 licenses for oil investments. The company is listed on the stock exchanges in London and Buenos Aires, and is part of an operating holding company with subsidiaries including Kilwer, Ketsal, Grecoil and Interoil.
In July 2017, Andes Energía merged with Petrolera El Trebol (PETSA), an Argentine subsidiary of Switzerland's Mercuria. The merger created the new company Phoenix Global Resources and it has a strong presence in the country's most prolific conventional and non-conventional oil basins. Its main objective is the development of the Vaca Muerta field in both Neuquén and Mendoza.
Manzano and Vila secured a $60 million deal with Mercuria, a major
hydrocarbon
In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons are examples of group 14 hydrides. Hydrocarbons are generally colourless and Hydrophobe, hydrophobic; their odor is usually fain ...
trader. This included a $20 million debt settlement for drilling in Chachaheun and a $40 million credit line for Vaca Muerta and other projects.
In addition, Manzano has investments in the oil sector through the firm Ketsal/Kilwer. Within the last few years, the business has been awarded exploitation contracts in southern Argentina, an area of great oil extraction potential.
Manzano and Vila also control Hidroeléctrica Ameghino S.A. (an electricity generating plant) in
Chubut Province
Chubut ( from Tehuelche language, Tehuelche 'transparent'; ) is a provinces of Argentina, province in southern Argentina, situated between the 42nd parallel south (the border with Río Negro Province), the 46th parallel south (bordering Santa ...
. The plant is connected to the Patagonic Electric System and provides an annual 174 Gwh of electricity.
In 2013, Vila and Manzano bought 49.9% of the UTE (Transitory Union of Companies) led by El Trebol to exploit the Chañares Herrados and Puesto Pozo Cercado deposits in Tupungato (concessioned until 2017). The operation was carried out with Mercuria, the holding company owner of El Trébol. They signed an agreement with a Brazilian oil company named Imetame Energia to explore their fields in Brazil.
Construction
Manzano also works with Vila in the construction industry through their industrial construction company Pamar SA, which specializes in building gas pipelines and has more than 35 years of experience in the market. Pamar works in Latin American countries creating oil and gas pipelines, process plants, electricity distribution networks, fiber optic networks and sanitation works. Pamar S.A. was recognized as the leader of the "Central West Gas Pipeline System", the largest of its kind in Argentina, covering more than 500 kilometers. Its biggest customers are YPF, TGS, TGN and EDEMSA.
The Vila-Manzano group became part of Metrogas, after
British Gas
British Gas (trading as Scottish Gas in Scotland) is an energy and home services provider in the United Kingdom. It is the trading name of British Gas Services Limited and British Gas New Heating Limited, both subsidiaries of Centrica. Serving ...
(BG) agreed to sell its holdings to the company Integra Gas Distribution LLC, owned by the Mendoza holding company. This deal would have given Integra Capital control over 7% of the company's shares.
However on 30 November 2012 state owned company
YPF
YPF S.A. (, formerly ; English: "Fiscal Oilfields") is a vertically integrated, majority state-owned Argentine energy company, engaged in oil and gas exploration and production, and the transportation, refining, and marketing of gas and pe ...
exercised their pre-emption right and bought all the shares that Integra had bought, alongside the rest of the shares that were still controlled by British Gas.
Wine production
In 1998, Manzano entered the wine industry. He created Grupo Vitivinícola de Tupungato, which operates Los Algarrobos estate in San Juan, and vineyards and a winery in
Tupungato
Tupungato, one of the highest mountains in the Americas, is a massive Andes, Andean lava dome dating to Pleistocene times. It lies on the Argentina–Chile border, between the Chilean Metropolitan Region (near a major international highway about ...
, Mendoza.
The winery spans 1,533 hectares at 1,200–1,500 meters above sea level, with 30 hectares of vineyards. It produces 1 million liters of wine annually for domestic and international markets.
In the same building as the winery is a restaurant known as La Tupiña in Gualtallary, owned by the Viticulture Group of Tupungato.
Political activities
Earlier in his career, Manzano was active in Argentine politics. He served as Secretary General of the
Justicialist Party
The Justicialist Party (, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism. Following the 2023 presidential election, it has been the largest party in the opposition against President Javier Milei.
Fo ...
and was an elected member the
National Congress. Manzano quickly rose through the ranks to become the majority leader from 1983 to 1991. President Carlos Menem appointed Manzano to his cabinet, where he served as Homeland Security Minister. On August 12, 1991, he was appointed Minister of the Interior.
He was known as a power broker who other members had to go through to get anything done. He is credited with helping pass economic reforms (the opening of the economy) and government reforms during the Menem administration.
Manzano was a key figure in 'La Renovación Peronista,' helping to reorganize the party after its electoral defeat. He has been called "a symbol of the late-80s renewal of Peronism."
During his political career, Manzano was first vice president, and then president, of the Deputies Block of the Justicialist Party (PJ).
In 1983 he was a national deputy. As a member of the
Chamber of Deputies of The Nation, he participated in the approval of the legislative bill on the modification of the civil marriage regime, being one of the main speakers of the discussion sessions prior to the final sanction of Law 23,515 (Divorce Law) in 1987.
[Cámara de Diputados de la Nación. 27 Reunión- Continuación de la 7 Sesión Ordinaria (especial), p. 3770 y 3771.]
In 1991, as Minister of the Interior and leader of the federal security forces, he played a key role in investigating the abduction of the businessman
Mauricio Macri
Mauricio Macri (; born 8 February 1959) is an Argentine businessman and politician who served as President of Argentina from 2015 to 2019. He has been the leader of the Republican Proposal (PRO) party since its founding in 2005. He previously ...
.
In 2008 Manzano was honored in Argentina's parliament (the National Congress of Argentina) along with other former members who had taken their seats in 1983, for helping to reconstruct Argentina's returning democracy.
United States
From 1993 to 1995 Manzano lived in the United States where he began to develop his career in the private sector acting as an international consultant. He lived in Washington, D.C., in 1994 where he associated himself with
Republican Party politicians. In 1995, he studied English and American domestic policy at the
University of San Diego
The University of San Diego (USD) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in San Diego, California, United States. Chartered in 1949 as the independent San Diego College for Women and San Diego University ...
,
and created a consulting firm called Integra Investments S.A., where he serves as the company's president. While living in the US, Manzano worked for Cuban-American businessman
Jorge Mas Canosa
Jorge Lincoln Mas Canosa (21 September 1939 – 24 November 1997) was a Cuban-American businessman who founded the Cuban American National Foundation and MasTec, a publicly traded company. Regarded within the United States as a powerful lobbyist ...
, representing Mas Canosa's business interests in Central America and Argentina. In 1996 Mas Canosa provided the initial funding for the creation of Supercanal Holding S.A.
In late 1995, after spending two years away from Argentina, he returned home with plans of pursuing a business career.
Philantropy
José Luis Manzano contributes to social, cultural and educational causes. He works with the Vendimia Solidaria program, which works toward the development of children and adolescents in the Province of Mendoza by providing financial assistance and promoting actions for the benefit of hospitals, neighborhood sports clubs and schools.
He also participates in the La Capital Foundation, a Rosario organization whose objective is to promote and disseminate spaces for cultural production, debate and academic formation and promote volunteering and social responsibility.
Manzano is sponsor of the House of Chinese Culture in Buenos Aires and president of the foundation of the University of Congress. He has also contributed to the
Clinton Foundation
The Clinton Foundation (founded in 2001 as the William J. Clinton Presidential Foundation, and renamed in 2013 as the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation) is a nonprofit organization under section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. tax code. It was e ...
and to
The Climate Reality Project, a foundation founded by former U.S. Vice President
Al Gore
Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American former politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He previously served as ...
that seeks to raise awareness about environmental issues such as
climate change
Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
.
Personal life
On February 21, 2015, Manzano, who is
Christian
A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
, married with Teresa Jordan,
who is his partner since 2000. The event was held at his estate in Gualtallary, Tupungato. He has 4 children: Juana Schindler, Silvestre Schindler, Maria de la Paz Manzano and Antonio Jordan.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Manzano, Jose Luis
Argentine Jews
Ministers of internal affairs of Argentina
People from Mendoza Province
1956 births
Justicialist Party politicians
Living people
20th-century Argentine Jews
21st-century Argentine Jews
20th-century Argentine politicians
21st-century Argentine politicians