Latest news with #energíasrenovables
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Plenitude begins construction of 200MW PV project in Andalusia, Spain
Plenitude, a company controlled by Eni, has commenced construction of its latest renewable energy venture, the 200MW Entrenúcleos solar project, located across Dos Hermanas and Coria del Río in Seville (Andalusia), with an expected operational date of 2026. The inauguration ceremony saw attendance by representatives from the Energy Department of the Regional Ministry for Industry, Energy and Mining of the Government of Andalusia, as well as officials from the Dos Hermanas Town Council. Entrenúcleos solar park consists of four plants: Granville, Killington, Plumlee and Rickwood. The park will feature 326,000 solar panels over more than 300 hectares. Each plant will have a capacity of 50 megawatts peak and they will collectively produce more than 435 gigawatt hours annually once fully operational. The plants will be connected to the grid through the Entrenúcleos SET substation, which will be shared with another developer. This substation will then be connected to the national grid through the Red Eléctrica Española (REE) substation situated in Dos Hermanas. Spanish company Solarig has been contracted to construct this solar park. "Green steel" - recycled material with a zero-carbon footprint produced entirely within Spain - will be utilised for testing purposes during its development phase. Plenitude Renewables Spain head of renewables in Western Europe and managing director Mariangiola Mollicone stated: 'Entrenúcleos is a landmark project for Plenitude — not only because it contributes to our growth objectives in Spain, but also because it reflects our deep and ongoing commitment to Andalusia, a region that plays a key role in the country's renewable energy landscape. 'With this project, we now have a portfolio of around 580MW under construction in the region, and we look forward to continuing to invest in sustainable energy solutions that bring long-term value to local communities.' This project represents Plenitude's third major investment underway in Andalusia alongside two other plants - Guillena at 230MW and Caparacena at 150MW. With 1.3GW already installed across Spanish regions including Extremadura, Galicia and Catalonia, Plenitude continues its expansion strategy by developing additional projects totalling more than 2GW at different stages throughout the country. Government of Andalusia's Regional Ministry for Industry, Energy and Mining's Energy Department General Secretary Manuel Larrasa stated: "Renewable energies are the oil that Andalusia never had; they are a golden opportunity for the economic and industrial growth of our land. 'Europe is in the process of decarbonising its industry and this is where Andalusia, with its wealth of natural resources (sun, wind and biomass), has an undisputed leading role. Our key differentiator is our greater availability of reliable energy at competitive prices.' "Plenitude begins construction of 200MW PV project in Andalusia, Spain" was originally created and published by Power Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Reuters
30-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Ecuador to receive $1 billion foreign investment linked to renewable energy
June 30 (Reuters) - Ecuador's presidential spokesperson Carolina Jaramillo said on Monday that the country will receive $1 billion in foreign direct investment linked to renewable energies through 2026. The investment includes $400 million from Power China and $600 million investment that will come from the Spanish renewable energy group Cox Energy.
Reuters
30-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Renewables account for 59% of Spain's electricity so far this year
MADRID, June 30 (Reuters) - Renewable energy sources covered 59% of the Spanish electricity demand so far this year, national electricity grid operator Redeia's ( opens new tab chair Beatriz Corredor said on Monday. Renewables accounted for a record 56% of electricity demand in 2024, according to Redeia data released in December.
Forbes
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Forbes
Blackouts, Blame Game, And The Future Grid
A massive power outage strikes Spain and Portugal, briefly affecting parts of France as well, on ... More Monday, April 28, 2025. Street lights, traffic signals, and internet/mobile networks go down, leading to widespread disruptions and long queues at ATMs and grocery stores. Authorities declare a state of emergency in several Spanish regions and mobilize 30,000 police officers to maintain order. The blackout, one of the largest in Europe's recent history, sparks debate about grid stability and the role of renewables in Spain's energy system in Malaga, Spain, on April 29, 2025. (Photo by Guillaume Pinon/NurPhoto via Getty Images) When millions of homes across Spain and Portugal were plunged into darkness on April 28, it took only hours for the political blame game to ignite. Pro-nuclear advocates and renewable energy critics seized the moment, framing the event as 'proof' that wind and solar are destabilizing our power grids. The reality, however, speaks to a far more nuanced challenge: how to build a system that's not just sustainable, but also secure and resilient in the face of growing volatility. The Weaponization Of Renewable Energy In the wake of the blackout, critics of Spain's energy policies, particularly those opposed to the country's nuclear phase-out, were quick to point fingers at renewables. But this was not the first time grid failure has been politically weaponized. After the 2021 Texas blackouts, state leaders and media commentators were also quick to blame renewables, in particular wind energy. However, independent investigations later revealed that the primary cause was frozen natural gas infrastructure. All generation sources, including gas, coal, nuclear, wind, and solar, were affected by the extreme cold, highlighting the broader vulnerability of a grid unprepared for extreme climate. Across Europe, concerns about the reliability of existing grid infrastructure in the face of a rapidly evolving energy landscape, have also gained traction. Germany, for instance, revisited its nuclear stance, floating the reactivation of plants and investment in small modular reactor research. Switzerland has also announced plans to lift its ban on new nuclear construction to pursue SMR projects. Yet, while nuclear is back in the political spotlight, the underlying issue goes deeper: energy systems are under pressure, and existing planning, operational, and market structures are struggling to keep pace. Texas suffered from an unexpected huge amount of snow. People without heat, without food, without ... More access to internet. It was a real life threatening situation. Dallas, 02.17. 2021. What Really Happened On April 28? According to ENTSO-E, at 12:33 p.m., a sudden outage at a substation in Granada caused a 2.2 GW generation loss, followed seconds later by further breakdowns in Badajoz and Sevilla. At the time, renewables supplied about 70% of Spain's electricity. While technically manageable and not unusual, this level of variable generation demands precise, real-time balancing. The root cause of the April 28 blackout was a sequence of voltage oscillations that triggered widespread instability across the grid. Under normal conditions, such fluctuations can be absorbed by stabilizing mechanisms like synchronous generators, frequency reserves, or flexible imports via interconnectors. But in this case, the system had fewer synchronous generators online than planned, and several did not respond correctly to control signals. Compounding the situation was insufficient voltage control and limited cross-border transmission capacity, leaving the grid more vulnerable. As the instabilities intensified, multiple generation units disconnected, some even prematurely, pushing the system into collapse. Spain's limited interconnection capacity with the rest of Europe (just ~3% of its installed capacity, far below the EU's 2030 target of 15%) further reduced the system's resilience. MADRID, SPAIN - APRIL 28: People shop for groceries using their phone as flashlight during a ... More widespread power outage that struck Spain and Portugal around midday on Monday, with the cause still unknown in Madrid, Spain on April 28, 2025. (Photo by Diego Radames/Anadolu via Getty Images) Modern Grids Require Modern Tools The lesson here is that we must modernize how we manage grids and markets. Unlike traditional power plants, which inherently provide inertia through their spinning mass, wind and solar installations lack this stabilizing force which is crucial in the event of sudden disturbances. However, this does not mean renewables cannot support grid stability. On the contrary, they can - just through different means. With advanced inverter technologies providing 'grid-forming' capabilities, renewables can now be designed to emulate the stabilizing behavior of conventional plants. These innovations allow renewables to play an active role in maintaining frequency and voltage, especially when paired with other flexible assets. One of the most promising solutions is grid-scale battery storage. Large battery systems can respond in milliseconds, absorbing excess electricity when there is too much supply or discharging it when demand rises, thus providing precisely the kind of fast, real-time support that modern grids increasingly require. The UK grid incident in 2019 offers a powerful example of this, especially as the supply from synchronous generation declines: After a lightning strike triggered a cascading series of failures that removed nearly 1.4 GW of generation from the grid in seconds, frequency dropped below the safe operating limit of 49 Hz, forcing operators to begin low-frequency demand disconnection (LFDD) to avoid a larger collapse. Crucially, battery storage operators responded almost instantaneously, discharging 475 MW to support grid frequency. Thanks in part to these batteries, grid frequency was restored to safe levels within just four minutes. Across Europe, momentum is building. The European market for autonomous battery storage solutions (by application) is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 11.24% between 2024 and 2031. The deployed battery storage systems will be able to provide grid-forming services, helping to stabilize the grid in the same way as conventional fossil-fueled powerplants once did. In fact, numerous battery systems deployed have these capabilities, however they are not being used. Without clear pricing or incentives for such grid services, this valuable resource remains untapped. After experiencing several major blackouts, the U.S.A has also come to recognize the necessity of investing in grid flexibility over the years. Despite looming cuts to clean energy tax credits introduced under the Inflation Reduction Act, battery storage capacity is expected to grow 70% in 2025 alone, with 18.2 GW of utility-scale storage slated for installation. Image of a battery energy storage system consisting of several lithium battery modules placed side ... More by side. This system is used to store renewable energy and then use it when needed. 3d rendering. The Missing Link: Energy Markets Design Beyond modernizing infrastructure and ramping up storage capacity, the design of electricity markets will also play a critical role in determining our energy security. As renewables grow, electricity pricing is being reshaped, and supply planning must be reorganized. Today's market frameworks, across both Europe and the U.S, were built around dispatchable generation from coal, gas, nuclear or hydro power. These assets can be turned on or off to follow demand, and they bid into markets based on their fuel and operating costs. Renewables, however, behave differently, with their power output depending on the weather, while having an effective marginal cost of production of zero once installed. This causes significant shifts in market dynamics. One consequence is growing price volatility. For example, excess wind and solar power purchase agreements that are strictly based on energy produced can push wholesale market prices down to zero or even into negative territory, meaning producers must actually pay to feed electricity into the grid. On the other hand, when solar and wind production dip, especially during morning and evening demand peaks, prices can spike dramatically. Such volatility creates uncertainty for investors and challenges the profitability of energy producers. That makes it all the more important to develop real-time balancing mechanisms and price signals that reflect the true value of stability and responsiveness in a renewable-heavy grid. On the demand side, transparent pricing like hourly electricity contracts, is changing how customers use power - encouraging them to shift consumption based on price signals. Moreover, the ability to quickly balance supply and demand as renewable output fluctuates needs to be valued in today's markets. In many cases, services like fast frequency response, grid-forming capabilities, and storage are treated as ancillary rather than core components of system planning. This leaves key flexibility providers, including batteries, demand response, and distributed energy resources, at a disadvantage when competing for market revenues. Grid operators and policymakers need to recognize that market structures need to evolve: Electronic trading board at Louisville Gas & Electric (LG&E) where traders buy cheap electric power ... More on spot market. (Photo by Michael L. Abramson/Getty Images) The Path Forward The energy transition is accelerating. The question is no longer whether grids can handle high shares of renewables, rather how to adapt infrastructure, markets, and regulations to this new reality. Crucially, modernizing grids to integrate flexibility and decentralization isn't just a technical necessity; it's also more economical in the long run than trying to retrofit outdated systems. With the right investments and a fact-based public discourse, we can build a resilient, affordable, and clean power system fit for the future.
Telegraph
25-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Spain becomes first country to ban petrol advertisements
Spain will become the first country in the world to ban petrol advertisements under a law soon to be passed by its Left-wing government. Petrol or diesel adverts will not be allowed unless the product contains some non-fossil ingredient such as biofuel, according to a draft bill announced on Tuesday by consumer affairs minister, Pablo Bustinduy. The new legislative package is aimed at tackling 'greenwashing', with a ban on any type of advertising for energy products from companies in the oil and gas sector composed exclusively of fossil fuel derivatives, without the use of renewable components. There will be no minimum requirement for the amount of green petrol or diesel that will allow companies to avoid the advertising ban, The Telegraph understands. The draft sustainable consumption Bill will also transpose into Spanish law an EU directive on empowering consumers faced by confusing and ambiguous green claims by companies. At the start of this year The Hague became the first city in the world to ban billboard advertisements for fossil fuels and related products, including combustion-engine cars, air travel and cruise ship holidays. The Dutch city's ban responded to a call by UN secretary-general António Guterres to ban advertising by fossil fuel companies, just as ads for tobacco have been prohibited almost everywhere in the world. A Dutch trade association for travel companies and tourism company TUI mounted a legal challenge against The Hague city council's ban but it was upheld by a court. The argument against the ban was that it infringed on freedom of speech and entrepreneurship, but a court in The Hague ruled that citizens' right to health is more important than the commercial interests of advertisers. The Spanish government's draft legislation also takes aim at generic environmental claims in advertising, meaning companies will have to justify the use of slogans such as 'environmentally-friendly', 'green', 'climate-friendly' and 'energy-efficient'. Sustainability labels will have to be based on certification systems and companies will not be able to make carbon emissions claims based solely on the supposed impact of offset programmes. Consumer minister, Pablo Bustinduy, said on Tuesday that the law would also 'put an end to built-in obsolescence by giving consumers the right to have electrical goods repaired and extending the length of guarantees'.
