Argentina's energy storage tender, called AlmaSADI, generated an unprecedented phenomenon for the country, as it received 235 projects for 8335.9 MW of power, equivalent to 12 times more than the target of 700 MW set for this first stage.
The volume surprised even the Wholesale Electricity Market Management Company SA (CAMMESA), which did not expect such a large amount of capacity offered and is already predicting an "aggressive" price level in anticipation of the opening of economic bids in a month and the corresponding award on July 8.
“If the level of competition is high, we will surely have prices of less than USD 10,000/MW-month as a reference. There may be quite a bit of regional disparity in prices, precisely because the level of regional competition is different,” stated Juan Luchilo , general manager of CAMMESA , during the “It Had to Be Said and It Was Said” streaming event , hosted by Energía Estratégica .
“I’m not worried because we have mechanisms to incorporate new, increasingly cheaper supply. And I understand that we need to structure regulated and market-based mechanisms for incorporating reliable supply. That is, establishing a set of actions taken by the State, such as tenders and so on, simply to try to organize the supply,” he added.
And it should be remembered that a total of 36 national and international companies are participating, with projects ranging from 10 MW to 150 MW in nodes of NOA, NEA, Centro, Litoral, Cuyo and Buenos Aires, with systems that must have four hours of discharge and operate a minimum of 180 cycles per year.
According to Diego Werner , CEO of Aires Renewables , the economic benchmark of the previous AlmaGBA call will also play an important role in the current offers. AlmaGBA awarded 713 MW in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area (AMBA) at an average of USD 11,337/MW-month, even with awarded projects that approached a minimum of USD 10,160/MW-month.
And while there are currently conflicting factors regarding storage CAPEX, such as the withdrawal of VAT refunds for batteries in China (it went from 9% to 6% in April 2026 and will be eliminated in 2027), at the same time competition has grown among international manufacturers and technologists.
“There are 10-15 technology companies whose products are similar, each with its own particularities, but with a very aggressive level of competition. So, that tax rebate that would increase CAPEX may ultimately lower it or keep it the same. And with the level of competition expected, prices are going to be very aggressive,” he adds.
“I’m not sure that 100 MW projects are much more competitive than 20 MW projects, because the interconnection cost is high and a 100 MW project might miss out on the first few years of the contract benefit, capturing 25% more payment for entering first in 2027, and that benefit ends in 2028,” he added.
"Out-of-the-ordinary" offers
The phenomenon surprised the Argentine market due to its magnitude and the speed of project development, achieving more than 8300 MW offered in just three months since the launch of the AlmaSADI tender.
“The transformation from interest and consultations to projects is, for me, out of scale. I don’t understand how it’s possible for companies to submit fifteen projects,” said Luchilo.
The general manager of CAMMESA even compared the process to the country's historic renewable rounds under the RenovAr Program, which between the middle and end of the last decade awarded 147 projects for more than 4400 MW in different technologies: "The equivalent is that this is the RenovAr II of the AlmaGBA tender."
In any case, the system administrator maintains the initial objective of awarding 700 MW, plus an additional margin of close to 10%, as announced by the National Secretariat of Electric Energy during the Future Energy Summit (FES) Argentina meeting in early March of this year.
“I understand there could be a few more megawatts but I’m not worried, since we’ll have other tools and the future is moving very fast here,” Luchilo insisted.
“Projects that aren't awarded now will still have value; they'll be able to meet demand and, therefore, will retain their value. There's going to be growth in hybrid projects; we'll see combinations of solar + wind, solar + BESS, wind + BESS, storage, and hydro + wind + storage. What's coming is optimizing dispatch with hybrid power plants, so much of what was presented yesterday, even if it isn't awarded, will continue to have opportunities.”
New demands accelerate the storage business
The boom in offers also reflects the market's expectation of future growth in Argentine electricity demand and the need for new firm power, considering mining projects linked to the Incentive Regime for Large Investments (RIGI) and data centers that will demand large volumes of power and energy, even faster than the "generation sector and large transmission works" could respond.
“If the RIGI (Renewable Energy Investment Plans) are approved now, they need to be operational within one to two years, having spent 80% of the equity, meaning that new generation capacity must be available between 2029 and 2032. And for that, there will be a lack of power lines that won't be available so early on, so the interim solution is batteries,” stated the CEO of Aires Renewables.
“Therefore, BESS projects that are not awarded now will continue to have value because there will be enough to meet demand. There will even be growth in hybrid projects, combinations of solar + wind, solar + BESS, wind + BESS, storage, hydro + wind + storage, in order to optimize dispatch,” he added.
“If new, unrealistic demand arises, it must be met with sufficient energy and power, within certain limits. Clearly, if there is an unrealistic surge in demand, a different system than the one we have will be needed—a larger one, and this also applies to electrification in general,” Luchilo added.