Market Trends of Argentina Renewable Energy Industry
This section covers the major market trends shaping the Argentina Renewable Energy Market according to our research experts:
Hydro Energy to Dominate the Market
- Hydroelectric generation accounted for approximately 29% of the total power generated in Argentina, in 2019. The total electricity generated from hydroelectricity reached 39,671 GWh, representing an increase of 11.04% over the previous year.
- In 2018, Argentina's President Mauricio Macri ruled in favour of constructing the USD 900 million 210-MW Portezuelo del Viento hydropower project on the Rio Grande in Malargue, south of the province of Mendoza, located in central Argentina. The facility is expected to help water management, tourism, and supply power to an estimated 743,167 residences, according to project specifications.
- Moreover, Argentina is in the midst of developing several hydro projects that have much larger capacity, compared to renewable projects in the RenovAr program. The government's authorization to restart the construction of the Kirchner-Cepernic hydropower complex in Argentina supports hydropower capacity growth in the country.
- Hence, there are a number of hydropower plants in pipeline and planning stages in the country, which in turn are expected to promulgate the renewable energy market in Argentina.
Understand The Key Trends Shaping This Market
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RenovAr Program Dominating the Renewable Sector
- The RenovAr program has so far attracted strong investor interest, which led to significant oversubscription of the bidding rounds. Bidders compete to sign 20-year power purchase agreements (PPAs) with CAMMESA (Compañía Administradora del Mercado Mayorista Eléctrico), which acts as off-taker on behalf of distribution utilities and large, wholesale market users.
- Round 2.0 of the RenovAr program was launched in August 2017 with an objective to contract 1,200 MW, with quotas per region and technology. The tender drew strong investor interest and was more than seven times oversubscribed than Round 1.0.
- Moreover, 88 projects with a combined capacity of 2,043 MW were successful in second round. In November 2018, Argentina launched the third round of its RenovAr renewable energy auction program, aiming at a total of 400 MW of new installed capacity.
- Therefore, the government's focus on increasing the renewable energy share in the energy mix of the country to 20% by 2020 is expected to be bolstered by RenovAr program.
