Panama signals battery role in 2027 power tenders

Panama will launch two capacity and energy tenders in 2027 that will include participation from battery storage systems, marking the first time storage has played a major role in the country’s tender program, according to Panama National Energy Secretary Rodrigo Rodríguez Jaramillo.

Rodríguez made the announcement at the recent opening of Energyear Centroamérica 2026 in Panama City, according to a National Energy Secretariat statement.

Rodríguez said upcoming tenders will include significant participation from battery storage systems. He added that Panama is reviewing the tender framework, with details on required capacities and eligible technologies expected by November or December 2026.

Rodríguez said the ministry is now nconducting a detailed evaluation of demand requirements and the generation mix it wants to model going forward, adding that investors need sufficient time to prepare proposals.

The announcement follows two tenders Panama awarded in March as part of its 2026-2028 tender plan, according to Rodríguez. Rodríguez said interest in the first tender, which added new renewable capacity, was concentrated in wind and hydroelectric projects.

The second, a long-term tender aimed at supporting the contracts market, drew more than 70 bids, Rodríguez said, and awarded nearly all the required capacity and energy. That process included a line item for converting liquid-fuel thermal plants to natural gas, with operation expected by July 2029, which was also awarded, according to the secretariat.

Rodríguez said both tenders were coordinated with Panama’s National Public Services Authority (ASEP) and designed not to place upward pressure on tariffs. He listed the criteria guiding the tender program as efficiency, timeliness, system flexibility amid growing non-conventional renewable participation, supply security, and demand-contracting coverage.