Spain: taking giant leaps towards decarbonization

Spain has historically been one of the countries leading the way in Europe in terms of renewable energy sources. In this process Enel Green Power Spain, renewal subsidiary of Endesa, has proved to be an important ally and a driver of innovation for a just energy transition based on sustainability. Confirming as much is the 2021-2023 Strategic Plan which, in the case of Spain, increases the amount of investment in renewables by 20% with respect to the previous 2020-2022 plan. There will be a substantial boost from solar and wind power technology and 80 renewable energy production plants are due to be built across the country. The aim is to increase installed capacity from renewables by 3.9 GW. Wind power in the north, photovoltaic in the south Looking at the map, the wind farms will be located mainly in the northern part of the country, while the photovoltaic plants will be largely in the south. The choice of their locations is based not only on the obvious climatic and geographical conditions but also on the ease with which the plants can be connected to the distribution grid, in addition to their vicinity to the thermoelectric power plants that will gradually be decommissioned. As regards the Strategy of Energy Storage and the expected regulatory changes, Endesa is planning to hybridize its renewable fleet with batteries. This is in order to make the power system more adequate and to enable the RES power plants to provide ancillary services to the grid. Endesa also intends to hybridize gas turbines on the islands to increase the penetration of renewables. The plan fits in perfectly with the new regulatory framework that the country is developing in order to facilitate the connection of renewable energy plants to the distribution grid. An ambitious program Spain’s Plan Nacional Integrado de Energía y Clima 2021-2030 has outlined an extremely ambitious program concerning the growth of renewables. The scenario involves an increase in wind power production from 28,033 MW installed in 2020 to 50,333 MW in 2030, and from 9,071 MW of photovoltaic power to 39,181 MW over the same period. Moreover, the Strategy of Energy Storage raises the minimum need for storage capacity for the system to 20,000 MW in 2030 from the 8,300 currently installed. The government has pledged to completely eliminate the country’s reliance on coal by 2030 in spite of the fact that it is currently contributing around 8,000 MW towards national electric energy needs. Energy transition in Endesa This transition also directly concerns Endesa, which has already introduced a roadmap for decommissioning its own coal-fired plants in Spain. At four sites this process is already under way: Compostilla and Teruel began the decommissioning phase last June, while As Pontes and Litoral are awaiting the authorizations to begin dismantling the facilities by June 30 this year. The phase-out plan involves not only the transition towards renewable technologies but also the safeguarding of jobs, through the reskilling and redeployment of the staff currently working at these plants. Reskilling personnel The expertise of the professionals employed at the coal-fired power plants is of great value when it comes to ensuring that these plants remain totally safe and respect the environment until the closure dates are established. At the same time this expertise can also guarantee a simultaneous switch to newly built renewable energy facilities. In order to facilitate this evolution, specific and personalized programs are planned to provide employees with new skills in areas considered strategic for the Group, such as business development, plant management and maintenance, digitalization, security, logistics and training in the latest technologies. Creating shared value The activities to support Endesa staff, as well as local populations, form part of a Group policy that has been consolidated and developed in the plans for Creating Shared Value (CSV). Enel Green Power’s goal at global level is to accompany the growth of installed capacity of renewables through dialogue with stakeholders and sharing initiatives at local level to ensure that, while progress is made along the road towards the sustainability of energy production, the wellbeing of communities is also safeguarded. In Spain this approach has found the perfect place in which to trial and develop pioneering activities that are destined to become best practices that can be replicated in other countries. Since 2018, for example, more than 38 CSV programs have been implemented, all of which were co-designed with their target communities. The results are tangible: more than 4,000 people have benefited from training and professional refresher courses. In the municipalities where new renewables plants are being built activities to benefit the community and to foster environmental sustainability are being promoted. Examples include the introduction of consumption monitoring systems, the adoption of LED lighting, photovoltaic modules and electric vehicles. Working with local communities The incorporation of initiatives for the primary sector is a common characteristic of our solar projects in Spain. Sharing and not competing for land use enables us to generate value for the local community through these types of activities. This hybridized model of solar plant and the primary sector has been well received by local communities and is a guarantee of the sustainability of our facilities in the long term. In our proposal to communities we also incorporate training programs that are linked to the primary sector. This is in order to facilitate local entrepreneurship in the sector, especially among the younger generation. And in some cases, elements of technological innovation are added through collaboration with startups. It is clear that traditional local activities can coexist with the production of clean energy. At the photovoltaic plants at Las Corchas and Los Naranjos, near Carmona (Seville), for example, an agreement was signed to integrate beekeeping. All of Endesa’s renewable projects are built according to a sustainable construction model, and contain mandatory measures for the contractor. They include: The installation of photovoltaic solar panels in the work booths to cover part of the necessary energy. The use of electric vehicles, water-saving measures through the installation of tanks and rain collection systems. The provision of defibrillators to ensure the health of workers. Some of the defibrillators are donated to the local community after the completion of construction work. Two of these measures (solar panels and the use of electric vehicles) have been recognized by the Ministry of Ecological Transition as sustainable engineering actions within Climate Projects. The projects promoted by the Group throughout Spain show a growing attention to subjecting new initiatives to shared and participatory decisions that presuppose a close dialogue with the local communities. The growth of green hydrogen Relations with local communities will also benefit from the advent of green hydrogen. Spain aims to become a technological pioneer in this sector, and sees it as a strategic asset for achieving climate neutrality by 2050 and a system based 100% on electricity from renewables. For the Enel Group, on the other hand, green hydrogen is key to ensuring sustainable development and a just transition. Endesa has therefore presented to the Ministry for Ecological Transition 23 projects concerning this technology, with a planned investment of 2.9 billion euros and the goal to install 340 MW worth of electrolyzers combined with 2,000 MW of renewable energy plants.

{{ currentMenugamenu.label }}

{{ currentSubMenugamenu.label }}

{{ card.title }}

{{ currentSubMenugamenu.numbers.title }}

Spain: taking giant leaps towards decarbonization

Spain: taking giant leaps towards decarbonization

Related content

{{article.title}}

{{article.title}}

{{article.title}}