- This facility is in the Barranco del Río ravine and was the first hydroelectric plant in the Canary Islands, operating from 1893 until 1954.
- Santa Cruz council is planning to refurbish the building and its annexes to convert the site into a museum and a tourism destination dedicated to energy.
The director of Generation for Endesa in the Canary Islands, Saúl Barrios, informed the mayor of Santa Cruz de La Palma, Juan José Cabrera, of the company's intention to donate the former premises of the El Electrón hydroelectric plant, owned by Endesa and the oldest such facility in the Canary Islands, to the city council.
The official transfer of this building, currently disused, the surrounding land and piping above the Barranco del Río ravine will be formalised over the coming weeks.
The mayor of Santa Cruz de La Palma, Juan José Cabrera, expressed his gratitude to the company for the gesture, stating that "finally the council will be able to be take ownership of one of the city's most important buildings. This is undoubtedly great news for Santa Cruz de La Palma and for all of its residents, who feel part of this history and now are charged with maintaining and conserving the site so that it regains the importance that it merits".
Meanwhile, Endesa's representative, Saúl Barrios, who travelled to Santa Cruz de La Palma for the express purpose of passing on the good news to the mayor, explains that "for us it is an honour to bequeath to the people of the city, through the mayor of Santa Cruz, an electricity facility with so much historical significance for the island. We share the enthusiasm of the mayor of Santa Cruz, who plans to transform the site into an energy museum".
At present, the building where the workforce of the El Electrón plant was based is disused and in an attractive location. It is the first hydroelectric plant in the Canary Islands and began operating five years after the electrification of the city of New York.
These facilities are accessed via a bridge and a plaque on the facade of the building reads: "Electrón 1893", in reference to the year when it started operating. The Santa Cruz hydroelectric plant remained in operation until 1954, when it was replaced by the Los Guinchos thermal plant in Las Breñas. "Several generations of residents of Santa Cruz worked at El Electrón, so Endesa thinks it is appropriate that they should be able to enjoy this legacy with such deep roots in their lives", adds Saúl Barrios.
The El Electrón plant's facilities represented a technological revolution in the Canary Islands at the end of the 19th century and positioned Santa Cruz de La Palma as a trailblazing city, since a waterfall and turbines made it possible to bring public lighting to the streets of the capital of La Palma.
On 31 December 1893, at midnight, electric lighting reached Calle Real in Santa Cruz de La Palma. It was the first city in the Canary Islands and the sixth in the world, after Paris, New York, London, Barcelona and Madrid, able to extinguish its candle lanterns. This event marked a significant change in the island's energy policy.
The El Electrón plant was built in Barranco del Río and used the water for irrigation from the ravine as an energy source. The City Council of Santa Cruz de La Palma, through its mayor, Juan José Cabrera, informed Endesa of its intention to refurbish the site of El Electrón with a view to turning it into a museum and tourist information point related to the history of the use of water from the city's water collection and supply network, and from rural irrigation in the districts of Dehesa and La Encarnación, as an energy source.
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 business from generation to marketing and through Endesa X also offers value-added services aimed at the decarbonisation of energy uses in homes, companies, industries and public administrations. Endesa is firmly committed to the United Nations SDGs and therefore strongly supports the development of renewable energies through Enel Green Power España, the electrification of the economy and Corporate Social Responsibility. The Endesa Foundation is also active in CSR. We have a workforce of 9,600 employees. Endesa is a division of Enel, the largest electricity group in Europe.