Iberdrola has signed agreements worth €800m with the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Instituto de Crédito Oficial (ICO) to drive the green recovery by developing new renewable energy capacity in Spain.
EIB and ICO will provide €600m and €200m respectively to the Spanish energy company to finance the construction of over 20 projects with total capacity exceeding 2000MW.
These new facilities are expected to provide green, competitive energy equal to the average annual energy use of almost 1 million households.
The EU bank is assisting this operation via a green energy loan, the features of which are fully in line with the requirements set out in its Climate Awareness Bonds programme.
As a result, it is likely to be allocated to its portfolio of loan operations financed via the issuance of these bonds.
The ICO financing is the third green loan it has granted to Iberdrola aiming to promote energy generation using renewable, non-polluting sources.
The new infrastructure should create 3000 direct jobs during the construction phase, as well as those created in other related sectors, until 2023. This is in addition to several hundred permanent positions, mostly in the rural areas where the new facilities will be located.
EIB and ICO will be financing photovoltaic plants and wind farms in several different parts of Spain, most of which are in transition regions.
The loans will partly fund a new solar plant in Cáceres, in the municipalities of Ceclavín and Alcántara, with installed capacity of 328MW.
Further projects expected benefit include wind farms and solar plants in a wide range of Spanish regions. It is hoped they will not only expand the generation of clean energy, both also improve Spain’s security of supply and diversify its energy mix.
EIB vice-president Emma Navarro said: “We are happy to continue working with Iberdrola to support infrastructure projects that enable Spain to take advantage of its huge renewable energy potential, while contributing to economic growth and employment during this critical time.
“This agreement is yet another example of our commitment, as the EU climate bank, to support operations facilitating the transition to a low-carbon economy.”
Navarro also highlighted “the dual role of green investment as a key focus for the economic recovery following the COVID-19 crisis and as a basic component of long-term growth in Europe”.
Iberdrola president Ignacio Galán added that “the green recovery is the perfect opportunity to generate sustainable growth and massive future employment”.
He said: “With the agreement we are signing today with the EIB and ICO, we are moving forward with our commitment to accelerate investment and put 3000MW of new capacity into service in Spain by 2022 and up to 10000MW by 2030.
“In doing this, Iberdrola will create 20000 high quality jobs in our country. We are certain that this is the right path, supported by both the Spanish Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC) and the European Green Deal.”
ICO Chairman José Carlos García de Quevedo said that “the agreement reached today strengthens the EIB and ICO’s partnership to promote the development of renewable energy projects by Spanish companies like Iberdrola.
“Fostering green investment is a key focus for securing a sustainable recovery with a positive impact on creating and safeguarding jobs”, he added.