The Minister of Energy and Mines, Víctor Hugo Ventura , inaugurated the first edition of Future Energy Summit (FES) Guatemala and revealed exclusively that they are analyzing a new auction for generation and storage projects, in order to cover capacity that was left pending.
“We are analyzing what the optimal range is and what the mechanism is to launch a new process as soon as possible, perhaps a PEG-6 tender to complete the margin that we need,” he assured in front of more than 400 representatives of the regional energy sector.
The statements by the head of the country's energy portfolio come a few weeks after awarding 1258 MW through 57 projects in the PEG-5 call , with a renewable participation of 73% and monometric prices close to USD 101/MWh , after more than 73 competitive rounds and 93 offers in reverse format.
REVIVE FES GUATEMALA 2026: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fQIrVqwZYk
From the official perspective, the process was successful not only because of the volume awarded, but also because of the technological reconfiguration it entails. Within the total committed, clean technologies account for approximately 918 MW , with solar using BESS systems clearly leading the way, totaling 671 MW and representing more than 53% of the total allocated .
However, the official acknowledged that the following processes will require immediate adjustments to the regulatory framework and that the next stage of generation and storage must include network infrastructure.
“The upcoming PEG-6 tender must be accompanied by an important transmission process such as the PET-4 call for bids (Energy Transport System Expansion Plan), after PET-3 failed to be successfully completed,” he stressed.
The reference pointed directly to the transmission auction that ended without any bids after the only participant failed to meet the required technical requirements, so the experience provided lessons on bankability, risk perception and contractual conditions.
This is a significant point, as the industry itself has warned that without grid expansion, up to 800 MW of solar power could be limited by operational restrictions , despite the country's strong renewable potential.
REVIVE FES GUATEMALA 2026: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fQIrVqwZYk
Added to this is another structural debate: electricity contracting in the unregulated segment. According to Guatemala's Minister of Energy and Mines, there is an asymmetry between the regulated market—which operates with long-term contracts—and large users, who continue to enter into significantly shorter agreements.
“How is it possible that a regulated market has long-term contracts of 15 years and unregulated demand comes with much shorter contracts, by law no more than 12 months? That is an issue that we must start to correct,” he stated.
As a result, the official intention is to create conditions to extend these contractual horizons and improve predictability for new investments over longer periods, so the official predicted that the territory is heading towards an unprecedented transformation for its scale.
“Guatemala will have a record in the coming years in terms of the participation of renewables and storage,” he said.
REVIVE FES GUATEMALA 2026: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fQIrVqwZYk