The Government Supports 79 Innovative Renewable Energy Projects in the Industrial Fabric

(Government of Spain/Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDAE)) Linked to an investment of 162 million, they will accelerate the energy transition in the production of beer, milk, cheese, meat, fertilizers, fuels or the air conditioning of greenhouses -- The beneficiaries are in the autonomous communities of Andalusia, Asturias, Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura and La Rioja.

The Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) has selected 79 innovative renewable energy projects in productive sectors to receive aid for more than 76 million euros. The materialization of the projects will require a total investment of 162 million euros; They will be located in factories and facilities in Andalusia, Asturias, Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha, Extremadura and La Rioja, and will range from obtaining synthetic fuel with green hydrogen to the air conditioning of greenhouses with geothermal energy. Together, they will add a power of 418 MW.

This is included in eight provisional resolutions of the Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDAE), relating to the 'Lines of aid for investment in renewables. Thermal and electric co-financed with European Union Funds', managed by the entity and framed in the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), which is intended to strengthen economic and social cohesion in the European Union and correct its imbalances.

These eight resolutions are the first of the 27 calls managed by the IDAE under this aid program, endowed with 316 million euros and aimed at the different autonomous communities, which have participated in its design and in the evaluation of the projects. The General Directorate of IDAE, as an investigating body, has published the provisional resolutions and has communicated the results to the beneficiaries as a prior step to the final resolutions, which will take place in the coming weeks, after the period of allegations.

Thus, more than 76 million euros of public aid will be allocated, which will represent a joint investment of about 162 million euros and which will result not only in greater efficiency of industrial processes and in reducing energy costs, but also in the competitiveness of these sectors by reducing dependence on imported fuels. In addition, these investments, which will promote the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energies, will consolidate activity and employment in the sectors that integrate these technologies, which in turn stimulates the development of new technologies and business models in the field. of renewables.

Of the 79 projects provisionally awarded, 41 will be carried out in Andalusia with an aid of 56 million euros and a capacity of 337 MW. It is followed by the Principality of Asturias with 17 projects worth more than 4.4 million euros and a capacity of 8 MW. In Castilla la Mancha there are seven initiatives with an aid of five million euros and a power of 46.5 MW.

For its part, Extremadura adds a power of 24 MW collected in seven awarded projects and a provisionally assigned aid of 10.3 million euros. Finally, almost half a million euros is allocated to Cantabria for six projects with a capacity of 2 MW, while La Rioja presents a project with an aid of 52 thousand euros and a capacity of 0.15 MW.

The budget assigned to the different autonomous communities responds to the availability of remnants of ERDF funds for the 2014-2020 period, in which these calls are framed.

CCAATable header	POWER (MW)Table header	HELP (€)Table header	PROJECTSTable header
Andalusia	337.41	€ 55,842,629	41
Asturias	8	4,479,272	17
Cantabria	2.06	449,333	6
Castilla la Mancha	46.57	€ 5,220,443	7
Estremadura	24	10,306,054	7
The Rioja	0.15	€ 52,500	1
TOTAL	418.19	€ 76,350,231	79

CCAATable header

POWER (MW)Table header

HELP (€)Table header

PROJECTSTable header

Andalusia

337.41

€ 55,842,629

Asturias

4,479,272

Cantabria

2.06

449,333

Castilla la Mancha

46.57

€ 5,220,443

Estremadura

10,306,054

The Rioja

0.15

€ 52,500

TOTAL

418.19

€ 76,350,231

In line with IDAE's commitment to innovation in the energy transition, these calls have prioritized the use of innovative technologies and applications that contribute to the decarbonization of different productive sectors. In addition to the innovative nature, the calls included among the evaluation criteria other positive externalities associated with the projects, such as the social and economic cohesion of the territory through the generation of employment, rural development or the fight against depopulation.

The innovative projects selected include the production of green hydrogen from renewable generation, which will be used to transform an old biodiesel plant in Valdetorres (Badajoz) into one for the production of synthetic fuels (e-fuel).

It is a unique and innovative project at European level that has a photovoltaic power of 4.5 MW and electrolysis of 1.25 MW, and whose main attraction is that the hydrogen necessary for the generation of these fuels will be produced by electrolysis from a photovoltaic installation. In addition, the energy that is not consumed in the process will be used to cover the electrical consumption of the plant.

At the same time, in Andalusia, concentrating solar installations will be put into operation for industrial processes such as the production of beer in Seville, olives in Córdoba or the operation of laundries in Almería, Cádiz or Huelva. In these cases, natural gas boilers were used that will now be replaced by solar thermal installations that will generate cleanly the steam necessary for the production processes. It also highlights the development of a geothermal plant for the air conditioning of greenhouses in Níjar (Almería).

For its part, in Castilla-La Mancha the selected projects will contribute to the transformation of industries with great weight in the local economy such as meat or dairy through the implementation of concentrating solar thermal energy installations in artisan cheese factories in Villamayor de Santiago (Cuenca) and Tembleque (Toledo).

Likewise, the construction or expansion of facilities for 100% renewable biomass heat networks stands out, both to supply thermal energy for heating and hot water to buildings in Guadalajara and Cuenca, as well as for its use in the sludge drying process in a plant. waste treatment plant in Albarreal de Tajo (Toledo). The objective, in the latter, is to produce a more concentrated and ecological fertilizer.

The start-up of these 79 new projects -whose execution period ends on June 30, 2023- is part of the objective of MITECO to promote renewable energy installations that contribute to the diversification of primary energy sources, to the reduction of energy dependence and CO ₂ emissions .

In turn, it is one of the objectives of the current National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC) 2021-2030, which recognizes the potential of these facilities to contribute to the objective of reaching 42% of renewables on the final use of energy in 2030 and the decarbonization of the economy in 2050.

On April 27, the Council of Ministers approved the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR) promoted by the Government of Spain to reactivate the economy in the face of the pandemic caused by COVID-19, and in June the European Commission gave the green light to the Plan and gave it the highest rating in terms of contribution to the ecological transition. A month later, the Council of the European Union gave its final approval to the document and the first release of funds.

Although this line of aid is prior to the PRTR and is financed with ERDF funds, the integration of renewable energies in productive sectors, as well as the promotion of innovative renewables, are two of the priorities of the Recovery Plan in its component 7. In the framework of the PRTR, new calls in these areas are already in the preparation phase, the activation of which is planned throughout the year.