They will produce energy for 90,000 homes
BADAJOZ, March 15 (EUROPA PRESS) -
Naturgy will invest 70 million euros in three new photovoltaic plants located in the municipality of Badajoz, which will produce renewable energy for 90,000 homes. The three parks, with a combined capacity of 150 MW, will allow the avoidance of 200,000 tons of CO2 emissions and other greenhouse gases per year.
The Minister of Ecological Transition and Sustainability, Olga García, and the Mayor of Badajoz, Ignacio Gragera, have participated this Wednesday in the act of laying the first stone of El Encinar I, Los Naipes and Los Naipes II.
The authorities were accompanied by the head of Naturgy's Iberia Business Development, Juan Ferrero; the head of Construction at Naturgy, Elisa de Ferrando, and the delegate for Naturgy Project Development in Extremadura, Ana Ruiz.
The three facilities have an individual capacity of 50 MW and will generate a total of 315 GWh/year. Likewise, during the construction phase of these three projects, some 1,000 jobs will be generated, both direct and indirect.
The project has required significant coordination and collaboration work with three other developers in the area, which together will develop 17 photovoltaic plants. Naturgy will share with them evacuation infrastructures to the San Serván knot, which has required a coordinated management of almost five years with the "close collaboration" of the Junta de Extremadura.
The collaboration between the different promoters has also allowed the launch of a pioneering research project, with the collaboration of the University of Extremadura and under the auspices of the Junta, which intends to carry out a common environmental surveillance and monitoring plan, in order to assess how photovoltaic activity influences the terrain and the surrounding biodiversity.
The ultimate goal is to promote sustainable development that makes economic development compatible with the preservation of flora, fauna and soil, Naturgy highlighted in a press release.
Along these lines, the head of Iberia Business Development, Juan Ferrero, highlighted Naturgy's satisfaction at being part of the "green revolution" that Extremadura is leading, a community "already become a benchmark in renewable energy and a spearhead in Spain of a sustainable energy development model committed to decarbonization".
Naturgy has highlighted that Extremadura is a region of "high strategic value". By the end of the year, the company will have a total of nine facilities under development, construction and operation in the region.
In addition to the Merengue wind farm, operational since 2019, and the Miraflores photovoltaic plant, in Castuera (Badajoz), also in operation for several months, the laying of the first stone of El Encinar I and Los Naipes and Los Naipes II adds to the LasJaras de Badajoz photovoltaic plant, between La Albuera and Badajoz, with 59 MW of power.
In Plasencia, the Merengue II wind farm, Naturgy's second in Extremadura, with 50 MW of power, and the Puerta del Jerte photovoltaic plant, with 30 MW, are scheduled to come into service during the third quarter of the year.
To these we must add the photovoltaic Campo de Arañuelo which, with 300 MW of power and an estimated production of 514 GWh per year, will be the largest renewable project of all those promoted in Spain by the energy multinational.
The global figures for these nine projects imply a capacity of 651 MW and an investment by the company of more than 650 million euros, with a global production of more than 1,300 GWh/year, which represents the generation of electricity equivalent to more than 377,600 homes and 838,800 annual tons of CO 2 avoided.
For his part, the mayor of Badajoz, Ignacio Gragera, explained that the city is currently going through one of its best moments in terms of investment, economic growth and job creation.
"And if investment companies such as Naturgy also arrive and do so by injecting resources into sustainability, energy efficiency and the creation of 1,000 jobs during the construction phase... I can only thank Naturgy for having trusted Badajoz to install these three new plants", he assessed.
In her speech, the Minister for the Energy Transition, Olga García, has revealed that "among all", companies, administrations and citizens, a "true green energy revolution" is being promoted in an "efficient and sustainable" way in Extremadura , whose beneficial effects are already being verified.
Specifically, he has given the example of Badajoz, where in recent years 18 plants with a capacity of 474 MW have been installed, in which almost 300 million euros have been invested, with more than 1,400 jobs and the council has been able to raise several million euros. , which translates into economic dynamism and resources to finance projects that improve the well-being of the Badajoz capital.
The counselor has defended the transversal nature of the photovoltaic deployment that allows companies and industries that are installed in Badajoz to be supplied with clean energy that is produced in other parts of the region.
Thus, he stressed that he is living an "important progress" towards a clean and sustainable energy model, taking into account that "the industrial projects that are being installed in the region are directly related to the availability of clean and cheap energy".
Olga García has concluded by highlighting the advantages that Extremadura offers for companies in the energy sector, "affordable energy that means gains in competitiveness, in addition to other factors such as the strategic geographical location, the availability of land and essential resources for the energy transition such as qualified human resources, cutting-edge research centers, a stable institutional, political and social framework and an administration dedicated to accompanying business initiatives".
The counselor has encouraged the promoting energy companies to maintain in the coming months the "transformative drive" in renewable deployment so that Extremadura continues to lead the installation of greener and more sustainable energy in Spain, the Board reported in a press release.
