The Argentine electricity market is entering a new phase in which private PPAs will gain more traction, with the competitiveness of all energy sources and the Term Market (MAT) playing a leading role in the transition, as a result of Resolution SE No. 400/25 . Martín Mandarano, CEO of YPF Luz , analyzed the new trading conditions and warned that it involves reviving practices from past decades. "We haven't played the market for over 20 years."
"Now we have to dust ourselves off, start to understand that we have to take risks, that now we have to go and collect from the customer, manage risk and infrastructure," he said during the Future Energy Summit (FES) Argentina meeting. "That's what we're here for."
Otherwise, long-term contracts made with CAMMESA or Plan Gas to infinity and beyond are not a risk.
“For 20 years, neither gas producers nor generators have managed risk,” he insisted before more than 600 industry leaders. Relive FES Argentina 2026: https://youtu.be/rIfbzoRGgxU https://www.youtube.com/live/rIfbzoRGgxU?si=0uS_j2vjoapbSM75 Beyond the redesign of the electricity business, one of the structural challenges for the Argentine system will be supplying the growing energy demand associated with lithium mining , especially in the north of the country. The simultaneous development of multiple mining projects in regions with limited infrastructure raises questions about how to guarantee a continuous and competitive supply, as well as significant investments in transmission networks and firm power , in addition to renewable energy expansion. Therefore, YPF Luz is advancing in the development of solutions to anticipate this potential demand, including a 350-kilometer electrical infrastructure project designed to supply mining operations. "However, we were unable to get the plaintiff to sign a commitment, so we cannot create a line without having anything signed."
"Even though we have the engineering plans and held a bidding process, we couldn't award the construction contract because there wasn't enough demand," Mandarano revealed. "They don't sign because they lack financing, some study, or something else."
Since his project is at risk, he does not make a commitment to the generator.
So that decision is still pending, he added. This is compounded by the international context of the lithium market, which experienced a significant drop, settling at levels close to USD 9,400 and USD 9,600 per ton for lithium carbonate, thus hindering new investment decisions. Nevertheless, while the electricity business is being redefined, YPF Luz continues to expand its portfolio of renewable projects and energy solutions , with the aim of keeping pace with evolving demand.
To such an extent that it already has 819 MW of operational renewable energy and aims to reach 1 GW in the short term . Among the projects, El Quemado stands out, the solar park that the company is developing in Mendoza and the first initiative adhering to the Large Investment Incentive Regime (RIGI), which will have 305 MW of installed capacity, of which 200 MW have already been commercially commissioned and the rest will come online soon. It will be operating at full capacity in April and will be the largest solar park in Argentina .
In addition, we are building battery projects that we were awarded in 2025 in the AlmaGBA tender, located in Central Dock Sud.
“We estimate that the project will be operational by November, which demonstrates the speed at which a project can be developed,” Mandarano stated. Finally, the executive emphasized that the evolution of the energy matrix will depend on the characteristics of each demand and the combination of available technologies. In this context, each technology plays a distinct role within the system: “If something modular and low-maintenance is required, it will be solar; on the other hand, if something firm is needed, it will be thermal; if it’s in the south, it could be wind ,” the CEO concluded.