The surge of new renewable capacity is making history and reshaping the energy market across Spain, delivering a seismic shift in both installed capacities and electricity production from clean sources. In Spain, more than 60 percent of the installed power now comes from renewables, and last year the country produced more than half of its electricity from clean sources for the first time. Wind became the leading source of generation for the full year, and solar photovoltaic power took the top spot in a single month for the first time. To support these record achievements, a colossal electrical grid expansion is essential to connect the new plants to the system.
This monumental task is shouldered by Red Eléctrica de España (REE), the operator of the high-voltage grid and a cornerstone of the Redeia group, which also includes Hispasat, the satellite firm, and Reintel, the fiber network. “We are the brain and the spine that make all of this possible,” noted Beatriz Corredor, chair of Redeia, during her address at the Mediterranean Economic and Social Forum in Valencia, organized by Prensa Ibérica with the Fundación la Caixa. “Is the current grid sufficient? For the connections already in place, yes. But we must move forward, support the energy sector and heavy industry,” she added, underscoring the need to keep pace with growing demand and scale.
Redeia highlights that Spain has successfully integrated renewables into its power system with minimal losses—only about 2 percent of energy rejected or wasted, well below the European Union threshold of 5 percent. “Spain connects between 6,000 and 7,000 megawatts of new renewables each year, the same capacity as all of its nuclear plants combined,” Corredor emphasized. “Year after year. Demonstrating that this country can equip itself to grow without compromising reliability.”
Further Investments
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Even as Redeia believes the grid is currently scaled to meet present needs, it recognizes the necessity to improve quality and broaden deployment to handle the flood of new renewable plants and the rising demand from large industrial users such as gigafactories and data centers. In response, the Government approved an urgent update of grid planning to include more than 70 new initiatives and is preparing the pre-approval of a wholly new plan through 2030. The task will require additional investments across the board.
“Updating the current plan and adopting a new one will push us to multiply investments. We have already moved from around 400 million euros annually before the pandemic to about 1 billion each year. Extraordinary investment levels are needed to keep pace with the industry,” Corredor stated, also noting that regulatory changes will be essential to streamline approvals and support the expanded program for new networks and renewable generation facilities.
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