Grid saturation in Spain: how does it impact our daily lives?

The state of Spain's electricity distribution grid

Did you know that the vast majority of electricity grid connection nodes in Spain are saturated? This means that grid connection points for new demand (such as factories or housing developments) or new generation (such as solar self-consumption plants) lack the capacity for these new loads.

So far this year, more than 50% of grid access requests have been rejected due to insufficient capacity.

This gap between demand and grid capacity affects our daily lives more than we realise. Sectors such as housing, data centres, industry, and electric mobility are experiencing project stalls due to the lack of available connection capacity.

How did we get here? What are the consequences of insufficient grid capacity for key projects? And most importantly: what solutions can mitigate grid congestion and ensure a sustainable energy future?

Through a series of expert interviews, we address these challenges to offer a definitive perspective on the state of the Spanish electricity grid and the measures needed for the future

Drivers of grid saturation and strategic solutions

José Manuel Revuelta, our General Manager of Grids, outlines the current state of the electricity grid in Spain and the primary drivers behind its saturation. He also outlines potential short- and long-term solutions to address new connection requests.

'We are undergoing a pivotal energy transition, and the key is electrification. Every country is striving to implement this as effectively as possible, because the competitiveness of our economies depends on it.' — José Manuel Revuelta, General Manager of Grids at Endesa.

Housing: obstacles to new developments

Grid saturation is jeopardising the development of new housing projects. Insufficient capacity to connect new urban developments is stalling the delivery of new homes, impacting the real estate market at large. Furthermore, the rollout of residential self-consumption systems and electric vehicle charging points is faltering, impeding the transition toward more sustainable housing.

Marta Sánchez, Energy Sector Leader at EY Spain, explains how grid saturation affects residential electrification and outlines the proposed solutions to ensure new housing projects move forward without delay.

'There are thousands of homes that currently cannot connect to the grid, and the consequences are severe due to the high demand for new housing in Spain.' — Marta Sánchez, Energy Sector Leader at EY Spain.

Data centres: the digital bottleneck

The data centre sector is experiencing skyrocketing growth, driven by digitalisation and the expansion of technologies such as artificial intelligence and big data.

However, the lack of grid capacity is limiting the development of new data centres, which could stall the advancement of the digital economy in Spain.

Xaime Méndez, Head of Communication and Support at Spain DC, explains how grid saturation is affecting data centres and identifies the solutions required to ensure their continued growth and sustainability.

'Digital demand (streaming services, cloud, artificial intelligence, etc.) has grown much faster than grid infrastructure. This, compounded by the fact that many projects want to enter the same nodes, creates a bottleneck. The solution is not to slow down the digital economy, but to accelerate the grid.' — Xaime Méndez, Head of Communication and Support at Spain DC.

Electric mobility: the charging point challenge

Spain has more than 50,000 operational charging points and more than 14,000 inactive units, many of which remain offline due to insufficient grid capacity. This constraint limits the expansion of electric mobility, hindering the deployment of new charging points and affecting corporate electric vehicle fleets.

Verónica Esteban, Head of B2B/B2G Electric Mobility Deployment at Endesa, explains how grid saturation is affecting the development of charging points and how this impacts the mass adoption of electric vehicles in Spain.

'Demand is increasing rapidly, yet the grid is not adapting at the same speed. It is a reactive model.' — Verónica Esteban, Head of B2B/B2G Electric Mobility Deployment at Endesa.

Industry: capping industrial growth

Industry consumes one-third of our country's energy. Energy-intensive sectors such as steel, chemicals, and food face grid capacity constraints that are stifling their growth potential and overall competitiveness.

Laureano Álvarez, Partner in the Strategic Energy Consulting area at Monitor Deloitte, analyses how grid congestion is limiting Spanish industry and outlines the steps necessary for companies to secure the energy required for growth and decarbonisation. 

'We are at a critical moment. Of 18 GW of access and connection capacity requested by the industry at the end of 2024, only 2 GW could be granted. Half of the requests were rejected, and the other half were under study. There is no available access capacity.' — Laureano Álvarez, Partner in the Strategic Energy Consulting area at Monitor Deloitte.

International perspective

Does this saturation also affect other European countries? Does it impact our external competitiveness? Marta Castro, Director of Regulation at Aelec (Association of Electric Energy Companies), provides us with an international perspective on how other countries are facing the grid congestion and the lessons we can learn from their experience.

'There is no transition without electricity grids. All European Union countries share the common goal of increasing capacity and developing smarter, more digital networks.' — Marta Castro, Director of Regulation at Aelec.

Key solutions

To guarantee a sustainable energy future, we must act. Modernising electrical infrastructure, reinforcing connection nodes, and digitising the grid are fundamental steps to prevent saturation from limiting economic growth.

Experts agree that investment in new infrastructure, together with adequate energy planning, is essential for overcoming this challenge. And, of course, there must be a stable and attractive regulatory framework for investment in the grid.

Spain must act quickly to ensure that the electricity grid is capable of supporting economic growth, technological innovation, and the energy transition.