Situation of renewable energies in Spain and perspectives for 2020

Renewables outperform coal

A few days ago two documents of great importance in the panorama of renewable energies in Spain.

This is the study carried out by the Energy Research Center, Environmental and Technological (CIEMAT) entitled "Analysis of the situation of renewable energies in Spain 2016. Prospects for 2020"; and the other is the report that Red Eléctrica de España (REE) has prepared and published entitled "Renewable energies in the Spanish electricity system 2016".

Energy targets in Spain and Europe

Currently, there are three objectives in terms of energy, which must be taken into account for the present: Spanish and European level by 2020 (the so-called "triple 20" or "20-20-20"), these are:

  • The decrease in emissions of greenhouse gases by 20% from 1990 levels.
  • The use of 20% of the renewable energy.
  • The 20% increase in energy efficiency.

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It should be added that already at the end of November 2016 the so-called “Winter Package", Which increased these objectives by 2030, reaching a reduction of at least 40% in emissions of greenhouse gases compared to 1990, increase the share of renewable energies above 27% and improve energy efficiency by 30%.

The previous objectives for the year 2030 are contextualized with the European Union commitments according to the Paris Agreement already ratified.

The future of renewable energy

In the first document, you can see that it has three sections very differentiated.

First point

It deals with the current situation of renewable energies in Spain, differentiating primary energy, final energy and gross final consumption. In 2016 renewable energies contributed 15,9% of the final energy consumed and about 40% of the total electricity generation in Spain.

Second point

Analyze the different degrees of compliance with the points collected in the National Action Plan for Renewable Energies (PANER), both globally and for each energy technology.

Third point

In the third and last, it includes the recommendations to meet the objectives for the year 2020, highlighting the measures for the boost of biofuels in transport, the increase in subsidies for thermal, solar thermal and geothermal biomass. For electrical planning it is very important to correctly plan the auctions that have already started and those that will come.

China global renewables network

Renewable energies in Spain

Regarding the second document commented on at the beginning of the article, it should be noted that REE was obliged to carry out this analysis, given its role as operator of the national electricity system and to carry out the integration of the renewable energy in the same.

This document has come to light thanks to the presence of the Renewable Energy Control Center (CECRE). This is the first edition of this report which presents an overview of the different renewable energies during 2016, their evolution and objectives for 2020.

This consists of 5 chapters, an initial one that summarizes the next fourThese are dedicated to wind energy, water, sun, and land and sea respectively.

It can be highlighted that wind and solar energy are the ones that have driven the growth of renewable energies in Spain in the last ten years (almost 70% of the total), which has caused a significant decrease in emissions of greenhouse gases (slightly more than 43% of emissions compared to 2007).

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By Autonomous Communities, those with the largest renewable implementation are Castilla y León, Galicia, Andalusia and Castilla La Mancha, with almost the 62% of the national power. Of these, it is in Castilla y León where almost three-quarters of the total generation power is of renewable origin, widely exceeding the 2020 objective.

solar energy is reduced by pollution

What is clear with these two publications is the importance of the renewable energies in the world energy landscape, and the essential presence and exponential increase that they will have derived from international commitments on climate change.


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