Open Call for BESS and power generation “AlmaGBA”

On February 17, 2025, the Secretary of Energy published Resolution 67/2025 (“Resolution 67”), initiating the national and international open tender “Almacenamiento AlmaGBA” (the “Call for Bids”).

The Call for Bids is designed to incorporate new Battery Energy Storage System (“BESS”) generation power plants within the concession areas of the distribution companies Edenor and Edesur. The goal is to achieve a combined capacity of 500 MW, with an execution period of 12 to 18 months.

Preferred bidders will enter into a power storage and generation agreement (the “Storage-Generation PPA”) with Edenor and Edesur, with CAMMESA acting as a last-resort guarantor.

While the full details of the Storage-Generation Agreement are yet to be released, the main aspects of the Call for Bids are outlined below:

1. Scope of the Call for Bids

The Call for Bids seeks to enhance the reliability and supply conditions, within the Buenos Aires metropolitan area and the Wholesale Electricity Market (“WEM”), focusing on specific connection nodes (“CNs”), which are specified in the Call for Bids.

Bidders selected under the Call for Bids will enter into a Storage-Generation PPA, committing to energy supply and power availability for a minimum of four (4) consecutive hours per full discharge cycle. The term of the Storage-Generation PPA will be 15 years.

2. Minimum and maximum power capacity per project

The power capacity for each bid must range from a minimum of 10 MW to a maximum capacity, determined by the lesser of 150 MW or the capacity assigned to each CNs.

3. Storage-Generation PPA

Under the Storage-Generation PPA, Edenor or Edesur will be the principal obligors, whereas CAMMESA will serve as a last-resort guarantor. Should a payment default occur for two or more periods, CAMMESA may be required to pay the outstanding amonuts in lieu of Edenor or Edesur, as applicable.

CAMMESA’s guarantee will be capped at a maximum of twelve (12) consecutive months, equivalent to the remuneration under the Storage-Generation PPA.

The full terms of the Storage-Generation PPA will be published no later than March 31, 2025.

4. Call for Bids Schedule

  • Consultation period: February 19 - May 4, 2025.
  • Publication of the Storage-Generation PPA: March 31, 2025.
  • Publication of responses to consultations: February 24 - May 11, 2025.
  • Bids Submission deadline: May 19, 2025.
  • Award date: June 27, 2025.
  • Storage-Generation PPA signing date: June 30, 2025.

5. Bidders and offers requirements

Among the various requirements set forth in the Call for Bids, bidders are required to provide a bank guarantee of US$10,000 per MW as a bid bond.

**

For additional information, please contact Nicolás Eliaschev, Javier Constanzó, Daiana Perrone, Victoria Barrueco and/or Manuel Crespi.

by trsym

Normalization of the Wholesale Electricity Market

On January 29, 2025, CAMMESA published on its website complementary information to Resolution 21/2025 of the Secretary of Energy (“SE”) (the “Resolution 21”) (Available comments on this regulation here).

Among the published documentation, there is a note sent by the SE to CAMMESA (the “SE Note”) outlining the need for gradual normalization to encourage investment and reliability of the Wholesale Electricity Market (“WEM”).

Attached to the SE Note are the Guidelines for the Normalization of the WEM and its Progressive Adaptation (the “Guidelines”) prepared by the SE, which detail the modifications in fuel management, demand in the WEM, determination of prices and operation of both the Corporate PPA Market (“MAT”) and the Spot Market.

Additionally, the SE enclosed a Technical Report on the WEM situation (the “Technical Report”). This Technical Report analyzes regulatory and operational aspects to meet regulatory objectives, focusing on system transparency and efficiency, decentralization of CAMMESA, energy prices, fuel management review, Spot Market and MAT mechanisms adaptation, and infrastructure planning.

Associations represented in CAMMESA have thirty (30) days from January 30, 2025, to provide non-binding opinions on these documents for the WEM normalization process. At the same time, CAMMESA will have forty-five (45) days to prepare: a) a detailed report with a dispatch and transactional management plan; b) an analysis of the impact of the measures on the supply and demand of the WEM, and c) a report on the considerations of the WEM Associations.

Finally, the SE announced the issuance of new regulations for the normalization of the WEM to be effective as of November 1, 2025, regardless of the possible anticipated measures to eliminate restrictions.

***

For additional information, please contact Nicolás Eliaschev, Javier Constanzó, Daiana Perrone, Victoria Barrueco and/or Manuel Crespi.

by trsym

Deregulation of Electric and Hybrid Electric Vehicles Charging Activity

On January 29, 2025, the Secretary of Energy published Resolution 22/2025, abrogating Resolution 817/2023 (the “Resolution 817”).

Resolution 817 had created the National Registry of Charging Infrastructure for Electric Vehicles (“EV”) and Hybrid Electric Vehicles (“HEV”) and imposed the obligation to charge such vehicles exclusively at service stations.

In line with the state reorganization principles set forth in the Foundations Law the elimination of Resolution 817 deregulates the EV and HEV charging activity, allowing any establishment to provide such services.

***

For additional information, please contact Nicolás Eliaschev, Javier Constanzó, Daiana Perrone, Victoria Barrueco, and/or Giuliana Manzolido.

by trsym

New measures for the normalization of the Electricity Market

On January 28, 2025, the Secretary of Energy published Resolution 21/2025 (“Resolution 21”), which introduces the following key changes in the wholesale electricity market:

  1. Corporate PPA Market: Partially reinstates the Corporate PPA Market (“MAT”, or Mercado a Término) for thermal, hydroelectric and nuclear power plants with commercial date achieved after January 1st, 2025.
  1. Fuel management for Thermal Generators: As of March 1st, 2025, thermal generators operating in the Spot market (those without a PPA) will be allowed to manage their own fuel. The costs will be valued based on the reference price according to the variable production costs submitted, including transport and distribution costs, taxes and associated fees. CAMMESA will remain as the last-resort supplier, as well as the supplier of fuel for thermal generation PPAs.
  1. Phasing out the “Energy Plus” Regime: As of October 31st, 2025, the “Energy Plus” regime will be abrogated, although existing contracts will remain valid until their specified termination dates.

Resolution 21 is an initial but significant step in the National Government’s ongoing efforts to normalize the wholesale electricity market in a direction that fosters competition and private investment. As a result, additional and supplementary regulations are expected to be adopted in the short to medium term.

***
For additional information, please contact Nicolás Eliaschev, Javier Constanzó, Daiana Perrone, Victoria Barrueco, or Manuel Crespi.

by trsym

Foundations Law: Hydrocarbons and Natural Gas Regulation

On November 29, 2024, the Government of Argentina released Decree 1057/2024 (“Decree 1057”), that regulates Chapters I, II, and VI of Title VI of Law No. 27,742 ( “Foundations Law”), which modifies Law No. 17,319 on Hydrocarbons (“Hydrocarbons Law”), Law No. 24,076 on Natural Gas (“Natural Gas Law”), and environmental legislation under Law No. 27,007 (the "Environmental Regulation").

To review our comments on the Foundations Law, please access here.

The key takeaways of Decree 1057 are summarized below:

1. Regulation of the Hydrocarbons Law

  1. Decree 1057 establishes certain guidelines regarding the activities of exploration, exploitation, processing, transportation, storage, industrialization, and commercialization of hydrocarbons, including:
    1. Free market principles;
    2. Competitive markets through the participation of the actors across the production chain and related sectors;
    3. Local price alignment with international market conditions, ensuring hydrocarbons supply and parity in imports and exports;
    4. Efficient resource allocation;
    5. Long-term contracts, competitiveness, productivity, and integration into global trade; and
    6. Ensuring present and future hydrocarbons local supply.
  1. Interested parties in developing the previously mentioned activities shall (i) establish a legal address in Argentina and (ii) demonstrate financial and technical capacity. Regarding interjurisdictional and international transportation, the Government shall grant concessions and authorizations for inter-provincial operations, as well as for imports and exports.
  1. Decree 1057 provides for the free exports of hydrocarbons, subject to specific requirements, that include the submission to the Secretary of Energy of documentation that evidences (i) the details of the planned operation, (ii) production capacity, (iii) commercial agreements, (iv) compliance with the destination country requirements, (v) legal representative information, (vi) semi-annual and annual projections of volume and quality of hydrocarbons, port of in operation, and loading estimated date. The Secretary of Energy may object exports in case of:
    1. Shortages affecting local supply;
    2. Inaccuracies in the submitted documentation;
    3. Evidence of anti-competitive practices; and
    4. Unforeseeable variations of prices in the local market.
  1. The Secretary of Energy shall manage an export registry to monitor approved, objected, and completed transactions, and shall issue the Free Export Certificate in favor of the interested party i if no objections are raised.
  1. The Secretary of Energy may consider the export of surplus volumes of gas.
  1. Concessionaries shall submit annually the information regarding the availability of the resources and estimated production.

2. Natural Gas Law Regulation

  1. Decree 1057 provides for the free exports and imports of Liquified Natural Gas (“LNG”). The Secretary of Energy shall regulate its procedure, contemplating its impact on the current and new infrastructure and its investment amounts. Interested parties shall submit documentation that evidence (i) availability of resources; (ii) technical and financial capacity; (iii) LNG maximum volumes to be exported; and (iv) if the project has filed for the Large Investments Incentive Regime (“RIGI”).
  1. The Secretary of Energy will elaborate a Declaration on the Availability of Gas Resources, which must be updated at least every five (5) years, including market conditions, estimated production and exports amounts, and its impact on the local demand.
  1. The Secretary of Energy may object LNG exports in case of (i) shortages affecting local supply; (ii) lack of capacity to export LNG; (iii) inaccuracies in the submitted documentation; and (iv) evidence of anti-competitive practices. If no objections are raised, the Secretary of Energy shall issue a Free Export Authorization.
  1. Transportation and distribution licenses are eligible for a twenty (20) year extension beyond the initial thirty-five (35) year term, subject to compliance with obligations and corrections of deficiencies identified by the National Gas Regulatory Body (“ENARGAS”).

3. Environmental Regulation

In order to promote a consolidated environmental regulation, Decree 1057 instructs the Secretary of Energy to identify a coordinated procedure to amend the legal framework, considering, among others: (i) environmental licensing processes, (ii) abandonment of wells and installations, (iii) management of environmental liabilities, waste, emissions, and effluent management, (iv) safety conditions, (v) greenhouse gas emissions and decarbonization, (vi) guarantees and insurance for environmental contingencies, (vii) participation and access to public information, (viii) corporate environmental and social responsibility, (ix) inspections and sanctions.

***

For additional information, please contact Nicolás Eliaschev, Javier Constanzó, Daiana Perrone, Milagros Piñeiro, Victoria Barrueco and/or Giuliana Manzolido.

by trsym

Argentina extends the Emergency in the Energy Sector

On November 20, 2024, the Government of Argentina released Decree 1023/2024 (“Decree 1023”), that extends the emergency of the energy sector previously declared by Decree 55/2023, enacted on December 2023 (“Decree 55”) until July 9, 2025 (please see our comments on Decree 55, here).

Decree 1023 is applicable to the segments of generation, transport and distribution of electric energy under federal jurisdiction, as well as to transport and distribution of natural gas.

Moreover, Decree 1023:

  1. Instructs the Secretary of Energy to continue with the implementation of the necessary measures regarding the above-mentioned activities to establish the rate and pricing criteria under conditions of competition and free access and guaranteeing the provision of public utilities.
  1. Establishes that the resulting rates of the revision ordered by Decree 55 shall become effective by July 9, 2025.
  1. Extends the intervention of gas and power regulators –ENRE and ENARGAS– until the new entity established by Foundations Law is constituted.

 

For additional information, please contact Nicolás Eliaschev, Javier Constanzó, Daiana Perrone, Victoria Barrueco and/or Manuel Crespi.

by trsym

Updates to electricity spot prices

On February 8, 2024, the Secretary of Energy issued Resolution SE No. 9/2024 ("Resolution 9"), which amends Resolution No. 869/2023 ("Resolution 869").

Resolution 869 had approved the last adjustment of spot market remuneration established in Resolution SE No. 826/2022 and prior regulations.

Resolution 9 is issued within the framework of the Emergency Decree No. 55/2023, which declared the emergency of the National Energy Sector with respect to the segments under federal jurisdiction of generation, transportation and distribution of electricity, and transportation and distribution of natural gas, effective until December 31, 2024 (see our analysis of this regulation, here).

Resolution 9 is of an exceptional and temporary nature, whereby it will be applicable until the Secretary of Energy approves, no later than July 1, 2024, new regulations, with the end-goal of achieving an efficient, autonomous, competitive and sustainable energy market, in turn allowing free contracting among supply and demand, and the integration of the different generation technologies.

 

For additional information, please contact Nicolás Eliaschev, Javier Constanzó, Daiana Perrone, Rocío Valdez and/or Victoria Barrueco.

by trsym

Changes in the Electrical Power Transmission Grid Expansions Regulation

On January 31, 2024, the National Electricity Regulatory Entity (in Spanish “Ente Nacional Regulador de la Electricidad”, hereinafter “ENRE”) published Resolution 65/2024 (“Resolution 65”), introducing changes to the regulation applicable to electrical power transmission and distribution grid expansions and connection requests, with the end-goal of simplifying each of the below processes.

To that end, Resolution 65:

  1. Eases the process for approving minor scale electrical power transmission or distribution grid expansion works.
  2. Approves a new methodology to assess requests aimed at constructing or expanding electrical power transmission or distribution grid expansions, other than those set forth in (a) above.
  3. Approves a new methodology to assess connection applications to the existing electrical power grid; and
  4. Creates two registries for expansion and connection requests to the electrical power grid.

 

For additional information, please contact Nicolás Eliaschev, Javier Constanzó, Daiana Perrone and/or Victoria Barrueco.

by trsym

Omnibus Reform Bill: Modifications to Hydrocarbons and Natural Gas Regulatory Framework

On December 27, 2023, Argentine President Javier Milei sent to the Congress an omnibus bill (the “Omnibus Bill”). Matters pertaining to hydrocarbons and natural gas are addressed below:

I. Amendments to Law 17,319 on Hydrocarbons

  1. Scope and objectives: The Bill includes the hydrocarbon processing activity as part of the law’s scope, empowering the Executive Branch to grant authorizations for its development. Also, the main objective of the national policy is modified to maximize the income obtained from resources’ exploitation and satisfaction of the hydrocarbon needs of the country.
  2. Free trade: The Executive Branch would no longer have the power to fix prices of the domestic market in any of the production stages (by way of eliminating the so-called domestic barrel). In the case of state-owned companies, these may only trade at arms-length prices. In relation to foreign market permit holders, concessionaires, refiners and/or marketers, these may freely export hydrocarbons and/or their derivatives, and the Executive Branch will regulate its conditions, with the end-goal of promoting free international trade.
  3. Exploration activities: The Bill removes the exclusivity of the superficial examination in areas reserved to state-owned companies and revokes the section that did not allow to begin with such works without prior approval. On the other hand, Section 21 modifies the payment of royalties for hydrocarbons extracted during exploration (previously set on 15%), which will now be agreed in the bidding process.
  4. Investment regime: Concessionaires would no longer be required to ensure that their investments ensure the maximum production of hydrocarbons, and that they are compatible with the adequate and economic exploitation of the field and the observance of criteria that guarantee the adequate conservation of reserves.
  5. Exploitation by foreign legal entities: the Bill overturns the Section that did not allow foreign legal entities to bid for permits and concessions.
  6. Royalties: The exploitation concessionaire would pay a monthly payment to the grantor, to be determined in bidding awarding process. Furthermore, the enforcement authority will have the power to reduce the royalty up to five percent (5%) taking into account the productivity, conditions, and location of the wells. Per the bill, royalties will be the sole income of the provinces (owner of the resources).
  7. Unconventional exploitation: The exploitation concessionaire, within the area of concession, may require the subdivision of the area and the conversion from conventional to unconventional. In addition, the Bill eliminates the five (5) year time-bard applicable to the pilot planning stage, and the possibility to request for ten (10) year extensions.
  8. Replacement of the transport concession: References related to hydrocarbon processing are incorporated to Article 4 regarding transportation. Likewise, the regime of transportation concessions is replaced for an authorization regime.

II. Amendments to Law 24,076 on Natural Gas

  1. Exports and imports: While natural gas imports continue to be authorized without prior approval, exports must be regulated by the Executive Branch.
  2. License Renewal: The Bill extends the term for license renewal, from ten (10) to twenty (20) years.
  3. Transportation, distribution, and stocking: The acquisition, construction, operation and maintenance of new gas storage facilities is allowed.

 

For additional information, please contact Nicolás Eliaschev, Javier Constanzó, Pablo Arrascaeta, Daiana Perrone, Florencia Martínez Trobbiani, Milagros Piñeiro, Rocío Valdez, and/or Victoria Barrueco.

by trsym

Emergency Decree 70/2023 and the Energy Sector

On December 21, 2023, President Javier Milei released Emergency Decree No. 70/2023 (“Decree 70”). Decree 70 will enter into force on December 29.

While emergency decreets are constitutionally required to go through Congress, they are binding until they’re overturned.

Key aspects of the measures adopted by Decree 70 with respect to the energy sector are summarized below:

1. Hydrocarbons: Decree 70 revokes Decree No. 1060/2000 that established a limited term of exclusive fuel supply contracts entered into between oil companies and/or fuel suppliers and gas stations operators.

2. Electricity:

  1. Export Contracts: Decree 70 revokes Decree No. 1491/2002. This decree established that power capacity, energy and trading agreements: (i) were not comprised by Law No. 25,561 (that declared public emergency and the reform of the FX rate regime in 2002) and Decree No. 214/2002 (which allowed debtors to cancel payment obligations in Argentine pesos), and (ii) would be exclusively invoiced in US Dollars.
  2. Power Transmission Expansions: Decree 70 revokes Law No 25,822 that established the “Federal Electric Transportation Plan”, implemented by the Secretary of Energy (the “SE”). It also revokes Decree 624/2003 that authorized the SE to re-determine the fee or price corresponding to the portion of power transmission facilities not yet operational, regarding high voltage transmission or trunk distribution grid.
     
  3. Refundable loans: Decree 70 revokes Decree No. 311/2006, that approved refundable loans from the National Treasury to the Unified Fund, created by Section 37 of Law No. 24,065. Per law, receivables of the Unified Fund would act as a hedge against the fluctuations of the spot price and the stabilized price of the Wholesale Electricity Market (WEM).
     
  4. Distributed Generation: Decree 70 abrogates Sections 16 to 37 of Law No. 27,424, which foresaw certain promotional provisions with respect to distributed generation.

3. Powers granted to the Secretary of Energy: Decree 70 gives broad rights to the SE to redetermine the current pricing and subsidy structure of the energy chain, comprising electricity and gas.

 

For additional information, please contact Nicolás Eliaschev, Javier Constanzó, Pablo Arrascaeta, Daiana Perrone, Rocío Valdez, and/or Victoria Barrueco.

by trsym