Administrations cut the cords just as new demands arrive. Renewable power plants are under review as the government and regional authorities process hundreds of projects for new green energy facilities. The first major screening of projects excluded from the process has already been completed.
Energy groups face tight deadlines to secure administrative permits if they want to protect key grid access points. The race to obtain approvals can force them back to the starting line after years of bureaucratic delay, threatening to stretch timelines even longer.
The Ministry for Ecological Transition and regional councils have spent months evaluating the demands of hundreds of wind and solar projects through January 25, the deadline for most requests to receive an environmental impact assessment. After this review, about one in five projects that could have progressed were left out of the process.
In particular, administrations have rejected jointly operated renewable schemes or, in some regions, have not had time to review due to administrative bottlenecks. Some 15,000 MW, representing 20.6% of the total petitions and the right to connect to the grid, have been withdrawn. Among the projects affected are 10,500 MW of solar photovoltaic and 4,500 MW of wind farms.
More than a thousand projects stay in play
Following this initial pruning, projects continue to advance through the remaining administrative milestones, with 58,000 MW representing 79.4% of the total still pursuing approval, according to outlets from the Redeia group. This is just one of several bureaucratic hurdles energy companies must overcome before more than a thousand plants remain in the process.
Projects totaling 58,000 MW that remain in the administrative race are not yet guaranteed grid access. This renewables surge is massive in Spain. Records from Red Eléctrica indicate that 129,100 MW are either under review or waiting for access, with another 31,200 MW already requested and awaiting approval. Overall, demand exceeds 160,000 MW, roughly triple the government’s target to activate about 60,000 MW of renewables in this decade.
Once the environmental declaration is received, the vast majority of pipeline projects must obtain preliminary clearance from the central government for projects over 50 MW or from autonomous communities for smaller schemes, ahead of a late-April deadline. Building permits are due by late July.
Officials stress that the path for these two permits in the renewable sector will be significantly simpler than the environmental impact assessment, and the administration does not expect the bottlenecks seen in recent months to recur. Yet wind and solar operators warn that another major crunch could lie ahead as factories ramp up and competition for suppliers intensifies as the 25 June 2025 target approaches.
Hundreds of projects with a total capacity of 58,000 MW will need to secure permits within two years after the mid-year permits are granted. Industry insiders view this as virtually impossible, given the need to build the entire renewables program laid out by the government for this decade. Reaching the National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan targets would require the construction pace to rise by nearly five times the pace of the past few years.
saturated supply chains
The renewables sector warns of a potential squeeze in supply chains, as new factories must come online quickly under a compact timetable. Banks have begun negotiations to provide financing, typically taking about six months, once building permits are issued next July.
The process to gain real access to transmission or distribution grids can take another six months, with the grid connection often not activated until construction is complete. This means projects must be ready to deploy solar panels or wind turbines, secure construction crews, arrange equipment transport, and line up cranes and skilled workers. The sector is coordinating a broad range of services to bring facilities to readiness on schedule.
combating speculation
To promote genuinely viable renewables and curb speculative plays, the government requires developers to meet intermediate milestones and secure permits within a maximum of five years from obtaining grid access rights.
The Ministry for Ecological Transition, led by Vice President Teresa Ribera, approved an additional nine-month pause on several milestones and offered a form of amnesty for backers who withdrew applications to retract guarantees. Still, officials have resisted extending deadlines again, even as the industry warns of a looming traffic jam if delays persist.