Guatemala's I-REC market in 2024: diversifying and rising

Guatemala is showing strong momentum. Our analysis of the 2024 vintage shows a significant increase in market participation and a broadening technology base, in one of the fastest-growing I-REC markets in Central America.

Strong growth in utilization

Issuance grew 28.7%, to 1,757,121 MWh, while redemptions jumped 49.0% to more than 850,000 MWh. This surge reflects a more active corporate sector that is committed to achieving its sustainability goals through renewable energy attributes.

A diversifying generation mix

The market is moving beyond hydro dominance. Hydro still provides 92.8% of issuance, but solar grew from 0.9% in 2023 to 4.3% in 2024, and biomass entered the mix at 2.8%. This diversification is a key step toward a more resilient and versatile I-REC ecosystem.

Global and regional standing

Guatemala moved up to 19th place worldwide and remains 7th in Latin America. The number of active devices nearly doubled, with 25 new assets bringing the total to 52, and active installed capacity grew 66.3% to 740.7 MW. The new registrations also make the portfolio younger: the average commercial operation date of the certificates issued moved forward 25 months, to December 2012.

Although Guatemala does not yet have a local issuer, the support of GCC, The Green Certificate Company, remains essential for the continued development and integrity of the market.

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What it means for buyers

Guatemala is a growing source of certificates for companies with operations in Central America. The fast registration of new devices, including solar, points to more available volume and more technology choice in the coming years.