Buenos Aires Province, Argentina Allows Electric Cooperatives to Generate Power from Renewable Energy Sources

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On October 26, Law No. 15,665 of the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina was officially published in the Official Gazette of the Provincial Government. The law amends Law No. 11,769 on Electric Power, in force since 1996, and allows electric cooperatives and mixed-economy companies holding municipal electricity distribution concessions to generate power from renewable energy sources within their respective concession areas to meet all or part of the electricity demand of cooperative members and power users. The new law also creates the category of "community self-generators," incorporating eligible municipal electricity distribution concessionaires into the scope of provincial electric power activity entities; engaging in such activities requires authorization from the provincial competent authority.

The new law also allows two or more municipal electricity concessionaires to jointly develop community self-generation projects, providing a legal basis for cooperatives to jointly invest in and build renewable energy power stations. If the surplus electricity generated by a project is sold commercially, the participating entities must establish a joint-stock company in accordance with relevant Argentine national regulations. This provision distinguishes cooperatives' self-consumption generation from the commercial operation of surplus electricity, and also clarifies the organizational form for joint project development and electricity sales.

Law No. 15,665 amends the provincial renewable energy promotion regime, including eligible municipal concessionaire cooperatives and mixed-economy companies that own renewable energy power stations and supply power to members and users within the scope of incentives, giving relevant projects the opportunity to enjoy the prescribed tax incentives. In addition, the provincial government shall, through the Bank of the Province of Buenos Aires, promote long-term, low-interest special credit lines to support community self-generators in purchasing Argentine-made equipment and components, providing financing support for local renewable energy equipment manufacturing and project construction. The law has not yet specified loan amounts, interest rates, or specific application conditions.

As of September 2026, the Province of Buenos Aires had 1,180 generation users under the national distributed generation regime, with a cumulative installed capacity of 31.708 MW. This legal reform targets cooperatives and mixed-economy companies holding municipal electricity distribution concessions, and differs from the previous community distributed generation regime aimed at joint construction and sharing of renewable energy systems by multiple independent users. The new law does not set new installed capacity targets or project construction timetables, and its actual impact will still depend on subsequent authorization, financing mechanisms, and the implementation of specific projects.