Costanera is located in the city of Buenos Aires and has six steam turbine units totaling 1,131 MW, which are enabled to generate either with natural gas or fuel oil. Costanera also operates two combined cycles of 851 MW and 322 MW respectively. Its gross installed capacity is 2,304 MW.
During 2018, CAMMESA performed the dispatch of the Interconnected Argentine System (SADI for the Spanish abbreviation), according to the resolutions established by Secretary of Energy. In this context, the dispatch prioritized natural gas, taking into account the performance of the units and the use of liquid fuels (gas oil and fuel oil) in accordance to the restrictions imposed for power plants during the season of greater residential demand.
As a result of the performed operations, net generation of Costanera’s Convectional Units reached 1,155 GWh, and net generation of Combined Cycles reached 5,946 GWh.
In January 2017, the Secretary of Electric Energy depending on the Ministry of Energy and Mining updated through Resolution N° 19/2017 the remuneration values of Resolution SE N° 22/2016 to be applied from February 2017. During 2018 this regulation remain in force.
The implementation of Resolution SEE N° 19/2017 triggered an increase of remuneration of around 50% in relation to the previous regulation. Basically the remuneration concepts were simplified. There is a capacity charge, which varies in relation to technology and size of the unit, and a variable charge. Values are defined in dollars.
Since the sanction of Resolution SEE N°19/2017, it was given for thermal units the possibility to offer commitments of guaranteed availability, and additional guaranteed availability (DIGO and DIGO Additional respectively) with the same differential remuneration for every technology.
In this sense, in 2018 Costanera participated in the Summer Seasonal Programming (from November 1 to April 30), in the Winter Seasonal Programming (form May 1 through October 31) and the 2019 Summer Seasonal Programming (from November 1 to April 30) of the commitments of guaranteed availability.
In November 2018, Resolution 2018-70-APN-SGE was published, through which Generation Agents, Cogenerators and Selfgenerators of the MEM are allowed to supply their own fuel for energy generation. Following the enactment of this Resolution, CAMMESA has authorized the declaration of Variable Production Costs (CVP by its Spanish acronym). The declared CVP will enable Costanera to carry out a commercial strategy, in order to optimize its costs and the declared CVP.