Economic activity and decarbonization boost Catalan electricity consumption

BarcelonaIndustry has become the major driver of electricity consumption in Catalonia, clearly leading the way in electricity spending in Spain. And within this electricity consumption, the province of Barcelona stands out particularly, according to data published by the National Commission of Markets and Competition (CNMC), compiled by Papernest, a company specializing in supply consulting and management. In fact, industry sources point out that the increase in industrial electricity consumption is primarily due to economic growth—Catalan GDP has grown above the Spanish average since the fourth quarter of 2023—and, above all, the European average, as the economic weakness of Germany and France has slowed EU growth.

Thus, the CNMC data collected by Papernest indicate that electricity consumption is still below the peaks of 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, but with strong growth starting in 2022. The province of Barcelona is the largest consumer: two-thirds of this Spain represents 11.5%.

Some data show the boost in electricity consumption by Catalan companies. Thus, to give an idea, the consumption of Catalan SMEs is 35% higher than the average for the rest of the provinces in the State. And as for industry, consumption is quite significant: industries in Catalonia consume more electricity than those of Aragon, Castile and León, Castile-La Mancha, and the Balearic Islands combined.

However, the impact of the pandemic caused a sharp drop in electricity consumption—it should be remembered that GDP plummeted by over 10%—and it has not yet returned to previous levels. Thus, for example, electricity consumption in the province of Barcelona in the first half of 2019 exceeded 27,599,200 MWh, while in the second half of 2024 it stood at 25,862,649 MWh, a decrease of 6.29% over the period. However, if the comparison is made with 2022, when the pandemic was already over, domestic electricity consumption in Catalonia has increased by 2.47% and industrial consumption even more by 3.39%. The only sector where there has not been an increase is that of SMEs (-3.65%), although Barcelona remains the region in Spain with the highest consumption in this sector.

Supply Points

Another way to measure growth is electricity supply points. Catalonia is the region with the most points, surpassing the second-largest region (Andalusia) by almost 2,000 points. And when supply points are taken into account, the growth in industrial electricity consumption is evident. Thus, in Catalonia there are 4.43 million domestic supply points, 1.28% more than in 2022, while there are 160,339 supply points for SMEs and just over 7,000 supply points for industries, representing an increase of 4.19% over that period.