In 2024 we have seen a relaxation in electricity prices that has softened the tension registered in 2021 and 2022 with the outbreak of the war in Ukraine. This environment, in addition to supporting a moderation of inflationary pressures, has been a reinforcement for companies when seeking stability in the supply conditions of a strategic resource. In this context, the signing of long-term contracts of electricity supply (power purchase agreements), both in its physical variant and in its virtual or financial variable. The sectoral interest from the point of view of demand presents a very diverse composition, with a growing prominence of companies in the pharmaceutical sector, which accompany the usual demanders of this type of products (technology companies, telecommunications companies and large commercial stores). . Regarding technologies, solar and onshore wind continue to be the main sources of agreements, as long as the long maturation times of other sources (such as offshore wind), and the uncertainty regarding the implementation rates (such as is the case of hydrogen), they currently represent a disincentive when it comes to granting visibility to the buyer. However, despite the fact that the price context could allow buyers to benefit from somewhat more favorable conditions than those recorded in previous years, in 2024 has observed a drop in appetite for signing these types of contracts. Some of the reasons that help to understand this slowdown lie in the great challenges faced by the renewable energy sector, such as guaranteeing the continuity of supply to the buyer, in addition to allowing the seller to have control over the volume of production that is put into production. available to the market, avoiding negative impacts on its profitability. The conflict between security of supply and the ability to cope with the different demand patterns has been gaining greater relevance as the intense development of renewable energy sources has put the table incentive problems linked to the behavior of prices at peak production times for this type of energy. These difficulties may find relief with the signing of hybrid agreements in which the technology is mixed (mainly wind and solar), and also with the incipient incorporation of storage systems of energy at peak production hours of the day. This is an evolution that not only benefits the buyer insofar as they could have a stable energy source comparable to traditional fossil fuels, but also the seller, as the storage solutions and combination of technologies will allow them to distribute in a way the volume of energy sold to the market is more logical, preserving the profitability of the facilities and offering more competitive solutions. Pablo Guijarro and Alexandra Cortés are teachers at Afi Escuela.