RWE is making good progress in expanding its solar business in Spain. Following the Casa Valdes solar farm at the beginning of the year, RWE has now commissioned the sister project Puerta del Sol. The plant is also located near Madrid in the Guadalajara province, with a capacity of 44 MWac. Approx. 100,000 bifacial solar modules were installed at this site.
Bifacial solar cells consist of a double-sided module, which allows solar irradiance to be absorbed from the front as well as from the rear side of the module. A second glass pane on the rear side of the module ensures that refracted light is captured from the rear solar cells, thus increasing production and creating a higher efficiency module at the solar plant.
Katja Wünschel, CEO RWE Renewables Europe & Australia: “The commissioning of Puerta del Sol makes me very proud. RWE is now operating solar capacity of more than 140 megawatts in Spain. Innovative technologies like the bifacial modules enable RWE to make the best use of the Spanish sun and to drive forward the energy transition in Spain. We are happy that the expansion of our business is progressing well in Spain, which is one of our most promising growth markets.”
RWE Renewables Iberia – a key driver of green energy in Spain
In addition to the two solar farms commissioned in 2023, RWE is in the commissioning phase of Las Vaguadas (10 MW) in the province of Badajoz and constructing another large-scale solar project in Andalusia. The Gazules project consists of two solar farms – Gazules 1 and Gazules 2 – with a rated capacity of 46 MWac each. After the commissioning of this project at the end of 2023, RWE will operate solar capacity of approximately 250 MWac in Spain. Furthermore, RWE Renewables Iberia already operates an installed onshore wind capacity of approximately 490 MW and is building the Orkoien onshore wind project near Pamplona to test innovative sustainable technologies.
Building on the long-established onshore and solar business in Spain, RWE is now keen to step into the Spanish offshore market together with its partner Ferrovial. The partners plan to jointly develop, construct and operate floating offshore wind farms off the Spanish coast.
Pictures of Las Vaguadas for media use (credit: RWE) are available at the RWE Media Centre.