The Basque Country is gaining importance within Spain's new electricity planning for 2030. The Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) plans to meet 2.3 GW of additional demand from the transmission network and build 10 new substation parks in the Basque territory.
The redesign comes after analyzing the 2,566 claims received during the public hearing phase and is part of a broader review of national planning, whose planned investment increased from €13.6 billion to more than €17 billion .
In the Basque Country, the package also includes the construction of 476 kilometers of new power lines and the upgrading of another 421 kilometers of existing lines to increase their capacity. Work is also planned for most of the existing substations.
The industrial sector appears to be the main driver of expansion. According to MITECO, approximately 60% of the new demand met will correspond to industry , while the remainder will be associated with hydrogen, port decarbonization, railway electrification, and housing.
The plan also expands the space for new generation. The Ministry proposes increasing the access capacity for renewables by more than 750 MW , primarily wind and solar photovoltaic linked to self-consumption.
Two actions will be given priority: the axis with Navarra and the renewal of a reactor aimed at reinforcing the resilience and solidity of the Basque electrical system.
“The Government has made a great effort to ensure that the upcoming Planning allows us to take advantage of the competitive edge offered by renewable generation, facilitating the development of new projects,” said the Secretary of State for Energy, Joan Groizard .
The new proposal still needs to complete its legislative process. After the round of consultations with the autonomous communities, the document will be sent to the Committee on Ecological Transition of the Congress of Deputies and subsequently to the Council of Ministers .
More grid for industry, demand and renewables
The planned reinforcement for the Basque Country is part of a change in approach to Spanish electricity planning, which places new demand in a much more relevant position than in previous cycles.
At the national level, the transport network positions intended to meet new demands from distribution increased 52% compared to the initial proposal, to 300 , while the positions for consumers directly connected to transport grew 12%, to 162 .
Positions associated with railway lines and port electrification also increased by 75%, to 59 , while the number of planned substation parks rose by 17%, to 193 .
The length of new lines planned now reaches 6706 kilometers , 11% more, and the existing network that will be upgraded amounts to 8164 kilometers , an increase of 6%.
The composition of the proposals themselves shows where the system is moving: 41% corresponds to demand, 40% to generation and 19% to storage .
The progress was presented during a visit to Gatika , the connection point for the submarine interconnection between Spain and France across the Bay of Biscay. According to Red Eléctrica, the project is approximately 70% complete and will increase the exchange capacity between the two countries to 5,000 MW .