Spain aims to build on its position in the renewable energy sector which is already strong thanks to its solar and wind development which in turn will help the country produce green hydrogen. In 2020, Spain outlines plans for its Hydrogen Roadmap which they hoped to have 6GW of hydrogen installed by 2024 and 40GW installed by 2030. In order to meet these targets, it is estimated investments of €10bn will be required. This article will introduce three renewable energy developers based in Spain that specialize in hydrogen energy and can be found on our list of large European developers of green hydrogen.
Iberdrola – wind, solar, hydro, hydrogen, and storage developer based in Bilbao
The Spanish energy giant has over 170 years of experience and in recent years has established a large-scale renewables portfolio. Iberdrola has set lofty targets when it comes to green energy, aiming to have 52GW of renewable energy installed by 2025 coming from wind, solar, hydro, and hydrogen assets. The Spanish group has honed in on hydrogen as a renewable energy source with plans to invest €3bn as part of the European Green Deal. In May 2022, Iberdrola launched its €150m green hydrogen plant in Puertollano. The energy produced at the plant will be used to power the Fertiberia Group, a fertilizer plant, and includes a 100MW solar and 20MW storage component. The Spanish group aims to further build on its hydrogen portfolio, in June 2023 the firm announced plans to establish a green hydrogen maritime corridor with the Netherlands and hosted the King of the Netherlands at the Puertollano site.
Acciona – solar, wind, biomass, hydro, hydrogen, and storage based in Madrid
Acciona is one of the nation’s leading developers of green energy, with a portfolio of over 11GW across five continents. The Spanish group has over 25 years of experience developing green infrastructure assets, with the majority of its energy produced by wind farms. In 2021, the firm first announced they are exploring routes to develop floating green hydrogen plants in partnership with BlueNewables, Ariema, and TSI. The OceanH2 project received support from the Spanish Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology which will target projects in Madrid, the Canary Islands, and Cantabria. In March 2022, the firm completed its Power to Green Hydrogen Mallorca project, the first industrial renewable hydrogen plant in Spain. The hydrogen plant is powered by two solar projects with an installed capacity of 8.5MW and 5.85MW In March 2023, Nordex and Acciona announced a JV which will see the duo develop hydrogen projects in the US and Latin America. The duo hopes to develop 50GW of green energy and 0.5 million tonnes of green hydrogen annually within the next 10 years. Acciona will own a 50% stake in the venture, worth €68m.
Enagas – hydrogen and biomass developer based in Madrid
Founded in 2002, Enagas was established to ensure competition and security of the gas networks of Spain maintaining 11,000km of pipelines throughout the country. The firm has a workforce of 1,300 and has developed over 50 renewable projects. In February 2023, the firm announced a partnership with Naturgy to develop a green hydrogen project located in La Robla, in Northern Spain. The hydrogen site, named Robla Hub will require an investment of €485m with an installed solar capacity of 450MW and an initial electrolysis plant of 60MW, which will expand to 280MW. Enagas was also involved in the Mallorca Power to Green Hydrogen project alongside Acciona and several other partners. In February 2022, it was announced that hydrogen platform Hy24 acquired a stake in Enagas in order to support the firm in completing its project pipeline of 750MW.
Image Source: Dan Meyers via Unsplash (07.07.2023)
