Spanish utility Iberdrola has planned to invest €15.5 billion (US$17 billion) in renewables by 2026 and commission 6GW of solar PV and onshore wind by 2027.
Over half of the investment will be in offshore wind, and all the investment is towards projects already under construction.
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Despite a bigger investment in offshore wind compared with solar PV, the company partnered last year with Spanish module manufacturer Exiom to build a module assembly plant in the northern Spanish region of Asturias. With an annual nameplate capacity of 500MW, the plant is expected to be operational in Spring and will focus on tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) modules.
Moreover, the Spanish utility recently signed a strategic collaboration agreement with industrial waste management company FCC Ámbito to promote the industrial-scale recycling of solar PV panels.
Overall the company targets to invest €41 billion by 2026, of which most of it (60%) will be targeted to network growth – including transmission – in the US, the UK, Brazil and Spain. Within that budget is included the purchase of 18.4% of Avangrid, the utility’s North American subsidiary.
Ignacio Galan, executive chairman at Iberdrola, said: “Our strategy will focus on delivering enhanced grid to support security of supply, now 60% of our total investment, as well as a strong expansion of renewables capacity, driven by the substitution of fossil technologies and additional demand. We also recognise an increasing role of storage technologies to preserve the balance between supply and demand 24 hours a day.”
