EIB and Iberdrola agree €700 M grid expansion loan
The funds are aimed at improving the efficiency and resilience of the power grid and helping connect more renewable energy sources.
Image for illustration purposes.
Spain, Madrid: The European Investment Bank (EIB) approved a €700 million green loan to expand Iberdrola’s electricity-distribution grid in Spain. An initial €500 million tranche was signed in Madrid by EIB Director General for European Union Operations, Jean-Christophe Laloux, and Iberdrola Finance, Control and Corporate Development Director José Sainz Armada.
The total investment under the project is €1.44 billion, with the remaining €740 million provided by Iberdrola. The goal is to improve the efficiency and resilience of the power grid, enable more renewable-energy sources to be connected and facilitate new uses such as heat pumps and electric vehicles driving forward energy transition and decarbonisation of the Spanish electricity sector. The project could boost industrialisation, economic growth and job creation in Spain, safeguarding 10000 jobs a year in 12 autonomous communities during the implementation period.
The loan forms part of the EIB’s plan of action to back REPowerEU (the plan designed to end Europe’s dependence on fossil fuel imports) and will support energy security by facilitating the integration of renewable energy and reducing the EU’s dependence on imports of fossil fuels. In 2023, the EIB Group invested more than €21 billion in energy security in Europe, €4.5 million of which were allocated in Spain, in areas including renewable energy, energy efficiency, power grids and storage systems.
Iberdrola operates ones of the largest electricity distribution systems in the world, with over 1.3 million km of power lines and more than 4500 substations in Spain, the United States, the United Kingdom and Brazil. The company supplies electricity to over 35 million people.
Source: EIB