Iberdrola ordered to return chunk of land under 500MWp solar project in Spain

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
The Núñez de Balboa plant has around 1,430,000 solar panels. Image: Iberdrola.

A Spanish court has ruled that Iberdrola must return part of the land on which its 500MWp Núñez de Balboa solar project has been constructed.

Ruling that the request for the expropriation of the land “lacked cause or justification to deprive the right of property”, the court in the Extremadura region ordered Iberdrola to hand back 525 hectares under the project to its previous owner.  

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

Spanning a total area of nearly 1,000 hectares, the Núñez de Balboa installation was completed in 2019 and is Europe’s largest PV plant, according to Iberdrola.

The utility, which plans to appeal the ruling to the supreme court, said the dispute stems from one of the three owners of the land on which the facility is located.

“The plant was built under a valid and legitimate title, so Iberdrola considers that there will be no dismantling,” the company said in a statement, adding that the project has all the necessary permits to produce energy and will continue to operate normally.

The setback comes as the company progresses with the 590MWp Francisco Pizarro project, which is being built in the Extremadura region and is set to come online this year.

Iberdrola signed a power purchase agreement early last year to sell electricity from the Francisco Pizarro plant to French food group Danone.

Having installed 3.5GW of renewables last year, Iberdrola is aiming to have 16GW of solar installed by the end of 2025 and reach a 95GW renewable energy portfolio by 2030.

2 December 2025
Málaga, Spain
Understanding PV module supply to the European market in 2026. PV ModuleTech Europe 2025 is a two-day conference that tackles these challenges directly, with an agenda that addresses all aspects of module supplier selection; product availability, technology offerings, traceability of supply-chain, factory auditing, module testing and reliability, and company bankability.

Read Next

June 9, 2025
Sonnedix has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Renfe to supply 420GWh of renewable energy annually for its commercial operations.
June 4, 2025
Independent power producer (IPP) Enlight Renewable Energy is expanding its Gecama Wind Project in Castilla La Mancha, Spain, by integrating solar PV and battery energy storage systems.
May 30, 2025
Spanish independent power producer (IPP) has unveiled two new solar-plus-storage projects, one in Central Chile and the other in Spain.
May 28, 2025
Renewables developer Solaria has reached an agreement in principle with Spanish bank Banco Sabadell to finance a 175MW solar PV plant in Spain.
May 23, 2025
TotalEnergies has commissioned its largest solar portfolio in Europe, a collection of five assets in Spain with a combined capacity of 263MW.
May 15, 2025
The Spanish Minister for MITECO, Sara Aagesen, ruled out a cyberattack on the blackout that affected Spain and Portugal on 28 April 2025.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
June 17, 2025
Napa, USA
Upcoming Webinars
June 30, 2025
10am PST / 6pm BST
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece