Iberdrola España installs its first microgrid in Spain

Iberdrola España has installed a microgrid at Schneider Electric's Molins de Rei plant in Barcelona – its first in Spain.

For the new microgrid at the plant, Iberdrola's subsidiary in Spain, Iberdrola España installed 990 solar panels, five electric vehicle charging stations and 216kWh of battery storage.

Alongside the installation of the microgrid, the plant also became a ‘Zero CO2 factory’, having completed all its decarbonisation goals.

"This microgrid project is an example of how electrification will allow a company to be more economically competitive, more sustainable, and have a more resilient facility by combining self-consumption, battery storage and energy management in a single project," commented Andrés Carasso, Iberdrola España’s institutional delegate in Catalonia.

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The microgrid installation forms part of an initiative from Iberdrola to develop the concept of ‘microgrids as a service’, combining solar, batteries and energy management software to enable customers to maximise the process of decarbonisation.

Financing was achieved through the Institute for Diversification and Energy Savings under the EU’s Next GenerationEU recovery, transformation and resilience plan.

Since 2019, the Molins de Rei plant has been reported to have improved its energy efficiency by 24%, plus an additional 11% provided by a new electric boiler. Furthermore, since 2017, it has reduced 2,250t of CO2 per year, achieving zero emissions in Scopes 1 and 2.

The new microgrid will further strengthen efforts to reduce energy costs and CO2 emissions, with the solar PV capable of producing 670MWh/year, approximately 10% of the factory's total consumption and backed by a 20-year PPA signed with Iberdrola Spain.

Josu Ugarte, president of Schneider Electric in the Iberian region, said the project not only reinforces Schneider Electric's commitment to sustainability, but also demonstrates that it is possible and profitable to transform the industry by combining electrification and digitalisation.

“Most importantly, it is a replicable and scalable model that can be applied to any factory seeking to move toward a more decarbonised and resilient model.”