Naturgy Energy S A : starts up two new wind farms in the Canary Islands

Naturgy has started up two new wind farms in the Canary Islands, which means the energy multinational now manages 12 in the Canary Islands, with a total installed capacity of 94.8 MW. The two new wind farms are Agüimes (10.75 MW), located in the municipal district of the same name, and Camino de la Madera (9.2 MW), in Santa Lucía de Tirajana, both on the island of Gran Canaria.

Construction of the two wind farms involved an investment of €20.5 million and created around 150 direct and indirect jobs, with the collaboration of 16 companies on the island.

The Agüimes and Camino de la Madera wind farms will produce energy that is equivalent to the annual consumption of more than 17,000 homes, and will contribute to reducing the annual CO₂ emissions by 35,500 tonnes, which is equivalent to taking around 14,200 vehicles out of circulation.

Agüimes, a landmark district for Naturgy

The Agüimes wind farm is the third largest energy producer for Naturgy on the archipelago, coming in behind Puerto del Rosario and Piletas I. With 32 GWh/year of energy, its production will be the equivalent of the annual consumption of more than 9,300 homes and it will prevent the emission of more than 21,800 tonnes of CO₂.

Equipped with three wind turbines, the Agüimes wind farm involved an investment of €10.6 million. In this way, this Canary Islands municipality is consolidating its position as one of those with the greatest number of Naturgy renewable energy installations on the archipelago. Alongside the new wind farm, the company also manages Piletas I which, with 12.8 MW installed power, is one of the highest producers out of all the company's wind farms in the Canaries. With around 45 GWh/year, the energy produced by this wind farm covers the annual consumption of around 12,900 homes, which is equivalent to the entire Agüimes district. This installation prevents the emission of more than 25,000 tonnes of contaminating and greenhouse gas emissions per year.

During 2023, Naturgy's renewable energy capacity in this district will grow with the planned new solar power output. When this year ends, Agüimes will have five photovoltaic plants developed by Naturgy: Gran Canaria I, Gran Canaria II, Telde I, Telde IV and Telde V. The first two will have a similar total installed capacity of 6 MW each, and will produce an annual total energy of 24 GWh/year, which is equivalent to the electricity consumption of 6,700 homes per year. Telde I will have a total installed capacity of 3.6 MW and an estimated annual energy production of 7 GWh, the equivalent to the electricity consumption of 2,000 homes. Finally, Telde IV, with 2MW power and an annual production of 4 GWh, and Telde V, with 1.8 MW and 3.5 GWh/year, cover the annual consumption of more than 1,150 and 1,100 homes, respectively. The five projects involve an overall investment by Naturgy of €20 million.

On the other hand, the Camino de la Madera wind farm, in Santa Lucía de Tirajana, is equipped with four wind turbines, and the investment made totalled around €10 million.

Camino de la Madera will produce 27.5 GWh of energy per year, which equates to the annual electricity consumption of 7,800 homes. This new infrastructure will enable the use of other conventional power generation sources to be reduced, helping to cut annual CO₂ emissions by around 13,700 tonnes, as well as reducing other polluting emissions.

In 2022, the 10 wind farms that Naturgy had in operation at the time produced more than 211 GWh of energy, which was a 6.5% increase compared to 2021, and equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of around 122,000 homes. Due to the energy produced by these wind farms, over the past year it has managed to replace the use of other, conventional sources of power generation, contributing to an annual reduction in greenhouse and pollutant gas emissions of around 275,000 tonnes.

Presence in the Canary Islands

Apart from the two wind farms the company has in the Autonomous Region, the energy multinational was also the largest bid winner in the award of the first tender process for photovoltaic capacity, endowed with ERDF funds (SolCan), with 44 MW power, and the second largest bid winner for the power awarded in the Canary Islands in the second tender process for wind capacity, endowed with ERDF funds (EolCan2), with 20 MW power. In the course of 2023, the energy company plans to finalise 11 new photovoltaic projects, which will entail a total of 50 MW power.

These 13 new photovoltaic and wind projects, which involve a total of 70 MW and a total investment of €80 million, will generate 156 GWh/year of electricity.

The company is also working on developing other photovoltaic and wind projects, as a demonstration of its commitment to energy transition on the islands.

Commitment to Energy Transition

Naturgy is working to boost its role in the energy transition and decarbonisation. The company currently has more than 5.5 GW of capacity in operation internationally and a portfolio of more than 195 projects in Spain, Australia and the United States.

In Spain, the company plans to start construction work within the next few months on 50 renewable projects with a total accumulated power of more than 2 GW, and scheduled to start up between 2024 and 2025.

Investments in renewable energies over the last few years confirm the company's strategic shift towards a more sustainable energy mix and its commitment to the energy transition. All this without ignoring the fundamental objectives of value creation and growth for each of its businesses, or the ESG goals.