Iberdrola opens the main European hydroelectric giga battery in Portugal

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The complex consists of three factories on the Támega River and its pumping capacity allows it to store energy to use when it is needed most

The Prime Minister of Portugal, António Costa, and the President of Iberdrola, Ignacio Galán, inaugurated this morning in Portugal the Tâmega gigabattery, a large hydroelectric storage facility that has taken almost eight years to build and will require an investment of more than 1,500 million euros is involved.

The event was also attended by the Minister of Environment and Climate Action of Portugal, Duarte Cordeiro, the Secretary of State for the Environment and Energy, João Galamba, and the Presidents of the Municipal Chambers of Ribeira de Pena, Vila Pouca de Aguilar, Boticas, Chaves, Montalegre and Cabeceiras de Basto.

Nearly 200 people, including suppliers, employees, local and national authorities and journalists from Spain and Portugal witnessed this event, which is an international milestone in technology, civil works and environmental investment.

With a capacity of 1,158 MW, the Tâmega electro-generation system is capable of storing 40 million kWh, equivalent to the energy consumption of 11 million people for 24 hours in their homes, making it one of the largest energy storage systems in Europe.

The complex consists of three factories – Alto Tâmega, Daivões and Gouvães – and its pumping capacity allows it to store energy to use when it is needed most; a cycle of energy efficiency and a true circular economy that will increase the total electrical power in Portugal and avoid the emission of 1.2 million tons of CO2 per year – without quantifying many more millions thanks to the renewable energy it will be able to integrate into the system – promote the fight against climate change

This major engineering work, on which several thousand people have worked, will prevent the importation of more than 160,000 tons of oil per year and consolidate itself as a socio-economic and job-creating engine in the region.

Likewise, the construction of the complex in this area of ​​Northern Portugal has had an ambitious plan of social, cultural and environmental actions, benefiting seven municipalities and having more than 50 million euros allocated.

As Ignacio Galán has pointed out, the development of this large complex has been possible thanks to the legal stability and good dialogue established by the government of Portugal in recent years. Moreover, this infrastructure shows that the two major goals of European energy policy, energy independence and decarbonisation, are perfectly compatible as long as the electrification of the economic and productive system is underway.

During his speech, Ignacio Galán also announced that the company will be able to double its investment in the Gigabattery in the coming years to 3,000 million euros, which it will allocate to new wind farms and solar power plants already under development or under construction.

Iberdrola thus continues its sustainable growth strategy, which has positioned it as the largest electricity company in Europe, having invested 140,000 million euros over the past 20 years and supporting more than 19,000 companies with its acquisitions, generating 400,000 jobs. In tax contributions alone, Iberdrola annually provides 8,000 million euros in the more than 30 countries where we are present.

Source: La Verdad

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