Today, leaders in the global and local wind industry, investors, and government stakeholders from across the political spectrum gathered in Buenos Aires on the occasion of the second edition of Argentina Wind Power, organised by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC), Cámara Eólica Argentina and Grupo La Nacion, to discuss the future of the burgeoning wind energy industry in Argentina.
Sebastian Kind, Undersecretary of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency commented: “The national government has been working hard for years to develop the renewable energy sector – there are currently 154 new projects between those that are under construction (105) and those that are already in the commercial operation (49). Altogether, these represent an investment of 7.5 billion dollars and 5 GW of installed power. This path that we have taken is supported by the attractiveness of our country as a destination for investment in renewable energy – Argentina occupies the 9th position in the last RECAI index published by the consultancy Ernst & Young, advancing one place in the ranking with respect to their previous report.
To date, we have awarded 244 renewable energy projects for 6.5 GW of power between the different government programs and initiatives. As for the Argentine wind market in particular, its potential is demonstrated by the more than 70 projects for 4 GW of power that have been awarded. Because of this, Argentina has become a destination of great interest for the investment of large equipment suppliers worldwide – both Nordex Acciona, in Córdoba, and Vestas, in Campana, have made the decision to install wind turbines factories in our country. In the case of Vestas, Argentina represented its third global market during 2018.
In addition, another 5 tower factories for the wind industry and 2 trackers factories for the solar industry are now established to accompany the expansion and development of the Argentine renewable market thanks to the RenovAr programme and Corporate PPAs (MaTER).”
Ben Backwell, CEO at the Global Wind Energy Council said: “Although there has recently been political and economic uncertainty in Argentina, which has caused concerns over the future of renewable energy in the country with the fourth round of RenovAr 4 scheduled to take place this fall, we have seen today at Argentina Wind Power that the industry and government alike are more committed than ever to ensure that Argentina remains a leader in wind energy. With nearly 1.2 GW already installed and much more capacity already in the pipeline, Argentina has an enormous amount of untapped potential if the government continues to support the industry through ambitious targets and programmes. The stakes are high – if Argentina gets this right, they can create billions of dollars in investments, create thousands of jobs, improve balance of trade and produce the clean energy needed to power a growing economy.”
Walter Lanosa, Vice President of Cámara Eólica Argentina said: “We are convinced of our capabilities to make Argentina a leader in the development of wind energy. With a defined objective and the execution of a plan that is not subject to short-term decisions, it will be possible to attract more investments at competitive costs that would fulfill power demand while allowing the country to reach its decarbonisation goals”.
On the occasion of Argentina Wind Power, GWEC Market Intelligence has released a special report analysing the outlook of the country’s wind energy market considering the current political and economic context as well as forecasts for RenovAr 4 and beyond.
