- Last year, Endesa's renewable subsidiary, Enel Green Power España, connected 626.65 MW to the grid from 12 new solar plants and 1 wind farm, built in record time during the pandemic.
- Endesa's new infrastructures in 2021 saw an investment of €466 million and more than 2,300 jobs created.
Last year, Endesa's renewable division, Enel Green Power España, connected 626.65 MW of new renewable capacity to the electricity distribution grid in Spain from 12 solar plants (499.5 MW), 1 wind farm (123.4 MW) and one hydroelectric plant (3.6 MW).
In the last three years, Endesa has connected 1.9 Gigawatts (GW) of new renewable capacity in Spain to the grid, a figure that will continue to increase, as explained by the company's General Manager of Generation, Rafael González. "Endesa is firmly committed to renewables, and with this new renewable capacity we are moving closer to total decarbonisation of the energy mix by 2040, a challenge that puts the company 10 years ahead of the United Nations goals," says González.
Endesa's new infrastructures in 2021 saw an investment of €466 million and more than 2,300 jobs created, with labour from the areas where the new renewable plants were built accounting for 80% of those jobs.
Endesa has promoted the creation of shared value in all the renewable facilities it has built over the past year, holding meetings with local authorities to make the new facilities "a part of everyone's life", explains González, who recalled that "these projects included training courses for a total of 491 people, many of whom have helped directly to build the new facilities, and now have a background and training that opens doors to a new job market for them."
In fact, one of the features of the new renewable capacity launched by Endesa has been the involvement of local communities, not only through training courses, but also with donations of materials used during the construction phase. Arrangements are underway to transfer seven solar self-consumption kits that were used in the construction booths to local companies, in addition to 21 water tanks and 12 defibrillators. Finally, agreements are being finalised with councils and local companies to implement energy efficiency and self-consumption actions in these municipalities. Specifically, 3 digital platforms for monitoring consumption, 4 self-consumption facilities in local companies, 11 efficient lighting initiatives and 4 charging points to promote sustainable mobility are going to be installed. We are also working side-by-side with the councils to identify and define primary sector activities that allow this activity to be fused with energy production in our facilities, under a shared land use approach.
Most of the facilities commissioned by Endesa last year are located in Extremadura, where at the end of the year 388 megawatts (MW) of new renewable capacity were connected, in what have been the largest projects developed by the company's renewable subsidiary, Enel Green Power Spain, in our country.
Eight projects have been undertaken in a record time of less than a year in Mérida, Almendralejo, Fregenal de la Sierra and Bodonal de Sierra, with more than 2,300 jobs created at peak times this summer.
These jobs have been filled thanks to the training courses that Endesa has organised in coordination with the municipalities of each of the sites where it has built its plants, a condition that is met in all of Endesa's new plants.
New renewable plants have also been launched in Andalusia, with the San Antonio solar plant in Huelva and Torrepalma in Seville. These two facilities have a capacity of 53 MW and more than 300 people have been hired for their construction, 80% of which is local labour.
In Aragon, Endesa has also launched new renewable capacity in the form of TICO plants, which comprise solar and wind installations. In 2021, 123.45 MW of wind power and 43.39 MW of solar power have come into operation.
Renewable potential in Spain
Endesa's renewable division, Enel Green Power Spain, has 150 hydroelectric power plants, 101 wind farms, 30 solar plants and 1 biomass plant in Spain. This renewable capacity will increase in 2022, because Endesa, through its renewable subsidiary Enel Green Power España, is already building new renewable plants in Andalusia, Extremadura, Aragon and Castile-la Mancha.
Along with these projects under construction, Endesa is processing new renewable capacity in Spain, with more than 60 projects in Andalusia, Extremadura, Castile-la Mancha, and planned capacity of about 4,000 MW by 2024, with an investment of circa €3,000 million.
Endesa has reinforced its commitment to clean energy to promote decarbonisation and aims to achieve 12,300 MW of solar, wind and hydro power by the end of the plan in 2024. The growth in renewable energy will allow 92% of energy production in Mainland Spain to be free of CO2 emissions by the end of 2024, six percentage points more than at the end of 2021. This ambitious project to decarbonise electricity production will allow Endesa to be a totally emission-free company by 2040, with 100% of generation linked to renewable sources.
Endesa currently manages, through EGPE, 8,389 MW of renewable capacity installed in Spain, including: 4,672 MW of conventional hydraulic power; 2,546 MW of wind power, 1,097 MW of solar power, and 75 MW of mini-hydraulic power.
Enel Green Power, a part of the Enel Group, is engaged in the development and operation of renewable energy production worldwide, with a presence in Europe, America, Asia, Africa and Oceania. Enel Green Power is a global leader in green energy and has installed capacity of almost 51 GW with a generation mix that includes wind, solar, geothermal and hydroelectric. It is spearheading the integration of innovative technology at its renewable energy plants.
About Endesa
Endesa is the largest electricity company in Spain and the second largest in Portugal. The company is also the second largest gas operator in the Spanish market. Endesa operates an end-to-end generation, distribution and marketing business. It also offers value-added services aimed at the electrification of energy usage in homes, companies, industries and public administrations through Endesa X. Endesa is firmly committed to the United Nations SDGs and strongly supports the development of renewable energies through Enel Green Power España, the digitalisation of grids through e-distribution and corporate social responsibility (CSR). The Endesa Foundation is also active in CSR. Our workforce numbers around 9,600 employees. Endesa is a division of Enel, the largest electricity group in Europe.