Iberdrola provides €41bn boost to electrification

IN A BID to accelerate electrification of industry, energy company Iberdrola will invest €41bn (US$44.3bn) and hire 10,000 people globally by 2026.

The company, which operates nuclear, solar, wind and other generation technologies across the globe, says that the push for electrification is being driven by the decarbonisation of industry and transport, along with greater demand from data, cloud, and AI infrastructure.

Iberdrola’s total funding includes €21.5bn to expand and strengthen electrical networks in the US, UK, Brazil, and Spain. The UK is set to receive 25% of that financing.

The urgent need for investment was highlighted last year in a report by the UK’s electricity networks commissioner. Nick Winser warned that some renewable project developers will have to wait until the 2030s to connect because investment in transmission has fallen short of investment in new clean generation.

Iberdrola will also spend €15.5bn on wind and solar projects that are already under construction, with the majority (54%) going to offshore wind projects in the US, UK, France, and Germany.

Its investments will help an additional 3 GW of offshore wind become operational from 2027, increasing the company’s total capacity to near 5 GW. Onshore wind and solar will be boosted by about 6 GW from 2027. By the end of 2023, Iberdrola had about 21 GW of onshore wind installed and nearly 6 GW of solar capacity.

The company is also investing €1.5bn to increase its pumped storage capacity by 20% to 120m kWh, providing greater grid stability.

The remaining investment will focus on customer services and maintenance of existing generation.

Iberdrola’s investment will see the company hire 10,000 workers around the world, while it expects to support 500,000 supply chain positions.

Ignacio Galán, executive chairman of Iberdrola, said: “The electrification of energy is unstoppable and will expand exponentially in the years ahead, supporting decarbonisation, boosting energy security, and reducing the volatility caused by fossil fuels.”