ARGENTINA Law and Practice Contributed by: Héctor Pozo Gowland, Esteban de Vedia, Carlos Ernesto Miná and Francisco Pozo Gowland, Pozo Gowland Abogados
remain under the current segmentation and subsidy regimes. • Transitional protection mechanisms and gradual implementation are intended to avoid social disruption and ensure policy accept- ability. Phased implementation and stakeholder dialogue • Implementation will occur progressively, allowing the market to adapt and policymak- ers to refine measures based on real-world performance. • The Secretariat is committed to consulting stakeholders – including industrial users, gen- erators and provincial authorities – to ensure a co-ordinated roll-out. Strategic vision • The reform is embedded in a broader vision of modernising Argentina’s electricity system, reducing fiscal pressure, and enabling energy transition. • The end goal is a competitive, cost-reflective, and innovation-friendly electricity market that ensures long-term energy security and finan- cial health. 1.8 Unique Aspects of the Power Industry Argentina’s electric power industry presents sev- eral distinctive features that make it particularly attractive to investors. One of the most relevant is the shift in political direction under the new government, which is promoting a liberalisation of the electricity market. This includes a move toward cost-reflective pricing, reduced state intervention, and increased participation of pri- vate players in generation, transmission and commercialisation. Recent regulatory reforms are aimed at restoring economic rationality to the market, providing legal certainty, and unlocking
investment flows that have remained dormant in recent years. The country also possesses exceptional natu- ral conditions for the development of renewable energy. Argentina has one of the world’s highest wind capacity factors, particularly in Patagonia, and excellent solar radiation levels in the north- west. These factors make large-scale wind and solar projects not only viable but globally com- petitive in terms of generation cost and output reliability. Furthermore, Argentina is emerging as a strong candidate in the green hydrogen econ- omy due to its abundant renewable resources, access to water, and potential port infrastructure for export. Additionally, the government has reaffirmed its commitment to nuclear energy as part of a long- term diversification strategy. The national nucle- ar plan includes the completion of the fourth nuclear power plant (Atucha III), and long-term plans for small modular reactors (SMRs) such as CAREM, developed by Argentina’s National Atomic Energy Commission ( Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica , or CNEA). These initiatives are intended to provide baseload generation with zero carbon emissions, supporting energy security and decarbonisation objectives. Lastly, Argentina offers significant potential for hosting energy-intensive infrastructure such as data centres. The availability of competitive elec- tricity – especially from renewable and nuclear sources – alongside a favourable climate (that reduces cooling costs) and a skilled technical workforce, positions the country as an attrac- tive location for companies requiring large, sta- ble power loads. As global demand for digital infrastructure grows, Argentina stands out as a strategic platform in Latin America for sustain- able, high-consumption operations.
17
CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook