Spain approves a decree to speed up renewable energy project development

The Spanish government has approved a decree to promote the transition towards a 100% renewable electricity system by 2050, with an intermediate target of 74% renewable electricity by 2030. The text includes measures to combat speculation in the use of network access permits (successive administrative milestones with stricter time limits for permits), to cut red tape (measures to simplify and speed up the processing of renewable projects and the associated electrical infrastructure) and to introduce a new power auction system, based on the price of energy. The new auction may distinguish between different generation technologies based on their technical characteristics, size, levels of manageability, location criteria and technological maturity, among others. The new regulation also includes new business models, such as electricity storage, hybridization and demand aggregation, and extends the validity of the National Energy Efficiency Fund until 2030.

In May 2020, the Spanish government approved the draft Law on Climate Change and Energy Transition. The text will be debated in the Congress of Deputies, Spain’s lower house, in the coming months. The regulation targets climate neutrality by 2050. According to the text proposed, Spain should reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 20% in 2030 compared to 1990 levels, which lower than the target included in its National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan 2021-2030 (NECP) (Plan Nacional Integrado de Energía y Clima, PNIEC) of a 23% reduction in GHG emissions. Renewables are expected to account for 70% of the electricity mix in 2030 and 35% of the energy mix. According to its PNIEC 2021-2030, Spain intended to cover 74% of the power mix with renewables by 2030 and 42% of the energy mix.