Renewable production falls in Catalonia: "It has been a very, very, very bad year"

BarcelonaRenewable energy companies, research centers, and professionals are sounding an alarm: "It has been a very, very, very bad year," assured Víctor Cusí, one of the spokespeople for the Observatory of Renewable Energies of Catalonia (OBERCat), during the presentation of the annual report.

The production of green energy fell in 2025 by 3.1% —generating 6,940 gigawatt-hours (GWh)—, while citizen consumption rose by 2.7% —to 45,250.58 GWh—. Consequently, the share of demand met by electricity from renewable energies diminished: it went from 16.2% to 15.3%. According to Red Eléctrica, in Aragon 83% of the energy generated is renewable and in Castile and León, 94%. However, it is important to consider the total energy produced, relative to which production is calculated.

The decrease is "mainly explained" by the drop in wind generation – which fell by 16.8%, covering 5.2% of demand – which was not offset by the increase in hydroelectric – accounting for 8.4% of demand – and solar photovoltaic, which without considering self-consumption, has covered 1.1% of demand.

In parallel, the import balance soared, making 2025 the third year in which Catalonia has imported more energy from abroad since 1990. In fact, it reached 7,144.96 GWh and covered 15.8% of demand, a higher proportion than that met by renewables. Cusí warned: "It is worrying because it implies greater dependence on external sources and creates problems for energy security and competitiveness."

In 2025, Catalonia added 78.51 megawatts (MW) of net green energy generation capacity, which refers to the power to generate energy. This is equivalent to powering 35,000 families for a year – comparable to a city like Manresa or Sant Cugat – without considering their economic activity. According to OBERCat, it is necessary to "multiply the figures for renewable implementation by almost 10 each year" to achieve that they cover half of the demand by 2030, as the Generalitat intends.

cover half of the demand by 2030, as the Generalitat intends.

The projects are there

Despite the alert call, Cusí underlined that Catalonia has "projects in the pipeline to achieve the 2030 objectives", but to move forward they must face "administrative barriers", the lack of qualified professionals and the improvement of networks. "We don't need many more projects, what we need is to implement them", he insisted. On the table there are 231 wind energy initiatives and 1,107 photovoltaic ones. The sector recalls that, according to all experts, the decarbonization of industry and transport will cause electricity demand to increase year after year.

In this context, from OBERCat they believe that the administrative simplification project of Salvador Illa's government is "an opportunity that Catalonia cannot miss". The observatory estimates that the project processing rates in Catalonia are 9 times higher than in Aragon, 20 times higher than in Galicia, and 600 times higher than in Navarre. Regarding deadlines, it places the average for a photovoltaic project at 900 days and for a wind project, around 1,200 days.

Holaluz, an exception?

According to the sector, the'self-consumption "has entered a recessionary phase"' after the boost provided by the European Next Generation funds and the rise in energy prices due to the war in Ukraine. In this situation, the renewables industry "has entered a new phase based on larger and more mature projects".

The new scenario has "very profoundly affected" companies in the sector: "Many have not been able to withstand the fall," stressed Cusí, who considered it a "fully structural adjustment" in a context where renewable investments "remain fully profitable". The recession has affected media companies such as Holaluz and SolarProfit to "energy giants that had business in the residential sector and have completely moved to the industrial sector", also including small installers.

About the possibility that Holaluz loses its license to operate as a marketer, the spokesperson for OBERCat Gorka Martí has also lamented that "it is not a good message for the sector that a company that has been a promoter of self-consumption in Catalonia is closing down", although he has not wanted to comment on the Spanish government's proceedings.