The Paraguayan government is finalizing the regulatory details for the publication of the country's first large-scale solar energy tender, a 140 MW project in the Central Chaco region. This initiative aims to address the rapidly growing energy demand and mark the beginning of a new renewable energy development model. "The tender will be launched during the first four months of the year. It will become a reality because the tender documents are being developed in parallel with the implementing decree for the renewable energy promotion law (Law No. 6977/2022)," stated Mauricio Bejarano , Paraguay's Vice Minister of Mines and Energy, in an interview with Energía Estratégica . "We are all committed to making it a reality within the first half of 2026, so that the construction and commissioning of the project can be completed within the next year and a half," he added. It's worth noting that the process was initially slated for 2023, but was delayed by more than a year while the necessary regulations were finalized. Now, the call for bids is nearing official announcement, coinciding with the finalization of the implementing decree. The regulations are expected to be enacted in February and include fundamental technical and tariff conditions to shape the process, as well as key flexibilities to facilitate private investment, such as extending PPA contracts to 30 years (doubling the previously planned 15-year term), enabling consortia, and allowing the transfer of projects. Furthermore, the implementing decree and the continuation of the solar tender in Chaco Central would mark a milestone in establishing a system of periodic tenders for renewable energy projects. The goal is for this to be replicated on a large scale year after year.
The first 140 MW are behind schedule because we are discontinuing a traditional model, different from the rest of the markets, and which presents some regulatory challenges, Bejarano explained. Why? The first photovoltaic park to be auctioned is part of the national plan to ensure electricity supply in the face of a sharp increase in demand, which fluctuated between 18% in 2024 and 12.5% in 2025 , compared to the traditional 7 percentage points, thus narrowing the available installed capacity. This new growth rate is forcing the State to expand its generation capacity, estimating that it will be necessary to cover an additional 300 to 400 MW per year. “We are preparing the regulatory framework to create an opportunity for the private sector and open a market that, until now, did not exist in Latin America,” remarked the Deputy Minister of Mines and Energy of Paraguay. Beyond this bidding process, the Executive Branch is also working on mechanisms to facilitate bilateral contracts between private entities, both for local and international consumers. According to government information, the country has a 1.5 GW market concentrated primarily in the cryptocurrency mining industry. There is international interest, especially in supplying large consumers of 30 MW or more, since the data center contracts with the National Electricity Administration (ANDE) expire in 2027, Bejarano reported. This means the market is opening up.
He added that ANDE will not only have the opportunity to purchase energy through public tenders, but also to trade it privately, or even export energy.
