Spain to grant EUR 150m in aid for wind, hydro repowering and blade recycling

The Spanish ministry for ecological transition plans to launch programmes to award EUR 150 million (USD 158.2m) of state funds to wind farm repowering projects, mini-hydro power plant refurbishment and the recycling of wind turbine blades.

The state aid, which will be financed from EU recovery funds, will be awarded through competitive procedures.

The money will go towards complete replacement of wind turbines, technological and environmental renovations of mini-hydro plants of up to 10 MW and “innovative” blade recycling facilities. Bidders that initiated their projects before requesting the state aid will not be eligible to participate, the ministry said. As is the custom in Spain’s energy-related tenders, projects located on the islands, regions abandoned to depopulation and economic ruin will be prioritised.

All projects have to be finalised before the end of 2025.

The Spanish government estimates that somewhere between 10 GW and 12 GW of existing wind farms in Spain would have to be dismantled for repowering in this decade. It expects its stimulus package to lead to at least 435 MW of repowered wind farms, 50 MW of refurbished hydroelectric plants and an annual recycling capacity of nearly 19,000 tonnes of blades and other composite materials from turbines.

The proposed terms and conditions for the programmes were made available for public consultation on Thursday. The ministry will receive comments until June 17.

(EUR 1.0 = USD 1.055)

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