Austria's largest energy company focuses on Malaga with ten projects lined up in the province

Nine of the developments will be solar and another will be a wind farm,adding up to a capacity of 722 megawatts

Nuria Triguero

Malaga

Monday, 19 February 2024, 12:11

Austria's largest energy company Verbund is planning to build ten renewable energy plants in Malaga province.

Until now, the majority of the company's electricity generation has come from hydroelectric power, but in recent years it has varied its projects with the aim that by 2030 solar and wind power will account for 25% of its total production. Within its plan to reach this goal, Verbund has made Andalucía a fixed part of its long-term growth plan.

Of the ten renewable energy plants it plans to build in Malaga province, nine are solar and one is wind. The developments will add up to a capacity of 722 megawatts, representing 20% of the projects it has planned in Spain. "Malaga is the territory that will receive the largest volume of investment within the group's renewable growth plans," the company said, pointing out it considers Andalucía "a favourable area for investment" as it has "led the development and implementation of renewables in an exemplary manner".

The spread of renewable infrastructure already in operation in Andalucía is fairly balanced between the two main energy sources: 149 megawatts of wind and 158 megawatts of solar. The region accounts for half of all renewable energy projects in Spain.

Verbund's projects in Malaga province will be mainly located around Antequera and in the Guadalhorce valley. Of the ten planned projects, eight solar plants are at an advanced stage of development and expected to be commissioned between this year and 2028. The other two (one solar and one wind) are in a more initial phase of development. They are expected to be completed by 2030 and beyond.

Long-term business model

However, the installation of wind and solar farms in Andalucía has not come without controversy. A movement, led by some councils and supported by environmental groups, opposes the avalanche of renewable energy projects that has taken place in the region. Verbund argues its business model distinguishes it from other investors in the sector as it invests in its projects "for the long term, developing them, starting them up and operating them until the end of the useful life of the assets, which is 40 years". "This very long-term model requires a strong commitment to sustainable development and well-being in all the locations where it operates," its spokesperson said.

"From the very initial phase, we work hand in hand with the town councils and regional authority to design the projects in a coordinated manner and integrate them appropriately into their surroundings," they added. The company also pointed out that one of the reasons they chose Malaga for these types of projects is because of the province's landscape which "allows solar installations to be better integrated into the landscape, as they are hidden within the structure of the terrain".

Measures to offset the impact

Verbund acknowledged however that the impact of their projects "is not zero". "The monitoring of environmental and cultural protection is extremely important, especially during the execution of the project, and this is what the administration has demanded throughout the life of the project," company sources said. Promotion of the projects involves a programme of environmental, cultural and landscape measures, agreed with the regional administration, which aim to ensure the final result of the project is always more good than harm, they added. Among the environmental measures are plans to correct power lines, preserve wetlands and biodiversity and provide aid to farmers to adapt their production to organic farming.

The company

Verbund Green Power Iberia, the Spanish subsidiary of the Austrian group, was established in 2021. The company currently has an operating capacity of 630 megawatts throughout Spain, of which 380 are wind farms and 250 are solar plants. Some 95 megawatts are under construction. The parent company, Verbund, is Austria's leading energy company and one of Europe's largest producers of renewable energy. A total of 97% of its generated energy comes from renewable sources.

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