1 GW Argentina Tender Update

• Jujuy Province Governor Gerardo Morales announced that his government has bagged the right to develop all 300 MW of PV offered as part of the 1 GW tender by the Argentinian government
• Morales stated that together with its Chinese partners the 300 MW was won for $60 per MWh
• Media reports suggested that average bid level received for solar power was $76.2 per MWh, while for wind it is reported as $69.5 per MWh
• Final list of winners is scheduled to be announced on October 7, 2016
• Second round of RenovAr Ronda 2 will be launched in March or April next year

Three days before the Argentine Energy Ministry was scheduled to formally announce the winners of the 1 GW of renewable energy capacity, the Government of Jujuy has declared that it has won all the 300 MW capacity tendered through a joint-venture company it set up, Jujuy Energia Y Mineria (JEMSE).

The provincial government of Jujuy held a press conference on October 3, 2016 to state it won the capacity for a price of $60 per MWh. This, it said, is less than the average cost of power generation in the country, around $85 to $90.

It says it achieved this low price level with the help of its partners Powerchina, Shanghai Electric and Talesun of China. While JEMSE holds 80% of the shares, the Chinese counterparts will own the rest. The awarded capacity includes three solar power plants of 100 MW each, according to Jujuy Governor Gerardo Morales. Developing the entire capacity will require an investment of $400 million.

Morales also informed that the plants are expected to generate 600 MW capacity all of which will be sold to the national grid owned by Administradora Company of Wholesale Electricity Market (CAMMESA).

Earlier there were media reports that the prices offered for wind and solar projects in the RenovAr Ronda 1 averaged $69.5 per MWh for wind and $76.2 per MWh for solar. For biomass the prices averaged $114.6 per MWh, for biogas it was $177.8 per MWh and $114.57 per MWh for PAH capacity.

Reporting the development, Latin American news portal BN Americas had stated that the country's energy minister Juan José Aranguren announced that the names of the winners will be officially published on October 7, 2016.

Argentina had tendered 1 GW as part of its flagship program RenovAr. But the response was much bigger, bid submissions totalled 6,366 MW (see Overwhelming Response To Argentina RES Tender).

The 1 GW is broken down into the following renewables – 600 MW for wind power, 300 MW for solar power, 65 MW for biomass and 15 MW for biogas. Around 20 MW capacity is reserved for fossil fuels. However, the ministry received bids totalling 3,478 MW for wind, 2,834 MW for solar, 53 MW for biomass and 53 MW for biogas.

For solar PV, winning bidders are eligible to apply for benefits of up to $720,000 per MW under the Renewable Energy Development Program (see Argentina To Auction 1 GW).

Argentina is aiming to add 10,000 MW of capacity by 2025. Second round of RenovAr Ronda 2 tender is expected to be launched in March or April 2017.