Government offensive on renewables: batteries, wind, and photovoltaic energy declared to be of overriding public interest

BarcelonaThe executive council of the Generalitat has approved a decree law that declares of superior public interest theelectrical storage with batteriesIt is the first Spanish administration to take this step, which is key to streamlining the processing of these facilities and providing security and stability to renewable energy. The decree-law seeks, on the one hand, to regulate and incentivize batteries and, on the other, to accelerate the energy transition and streamline the processing of solar, wind, and storage farm projects under the jurisdiction of the Generalitat (Catalan Government).

Batteries reduce the risk of power outages and, in the event of a system failure, they can continue to supply electricity and contribute to a rapid recovery of supply. The decree aims to define the urban planning and energy processing of these storage facilities to provide a regulatory framework and legal certainty for city councils and project developers. Thus, the regulation aims to dispel doubts about how these facilities should be processed and will accelerate their implementation.

The decree law introduces urgent regulatory measures for battery installations with a capacity of more than 500 kilowatts (kW) and establishes criteria for their installation, both independently and in conjunction with wind or solar farms.

The decree also provides that renewable energy generation facilities, their grid connection lines, and energy storage facilities will be considered of overriding public interest. This will streamline the administrative processing of solar and wind farms and storage facilities. Currently, Catalonia has 94 battery storage projects in the pipeline under the jurisdiction of the Generalitat (Catalan Government), of which 87 are independent batteries and 7 are hybrid battery projects with renewable energy facilities. The former total 920 megawatts (MW) of power, and the latter 22 MW.

On another note, the Catalan government also authorized this Tuesday the expansion of the staff of the Catalan public utility La Energética. The company will be able to hire 31 professionals, adding to the 30 it had when it started operating in September 2023. The increase in staff is in accordance with the forecasts of the business plan, which sets the goal of having the renewable energy potential necessary to supply all of the Catalan government's public services by 2040.

The team's growth will be funded by revenue generated by the company's own business. The staff expansion is a response to the progressive expansion of La Energética's core activities and the provision of new services. The company expects to reach around 50 megawatts (MW) of capacity this year thanks to a portfolio of approximately 300 projects, either executed or under development, utilizing various green technologies.

The increase in staff will allow La Energética to provide new services, such as entering the distribution sector to support municipal electricity grids, exploring energy sources such as thermal and bioenergy, and incorporating local authorities into its share capital with the goal of becoming a media company.