Red Eléctrica de España (REE) has planned to make an investment of 400 million euros in Catalonia until 2026 with the aim of renewing electricity transmission infrastructures, facilitating the energy transition process, and improving supply in both the Barcelona area and the Tarragona chemical complex. This budget allocated to Catalonia is equivalent to only 5.7% of the total investment REE plans to make in the 2021-2026 period, which amounts to 6,964 million euros, according to the new Electricity Transmission Network Planning that the Government has just approved and which is binding for the company chaired by former minister Beatriz Corredor.
According to REE, one of the main actions to be carried out in Catalonia will be the development of the so-called Cerdà 220 kV substation, which will be located on street 21 of the Zona Franca industrial estate and will improve the supply to the industrial estate and the Port de Barcelona. "This installation will reinforce connections with new lines between the Aeropuerto, Zona Franca, and L'Hospitalet substations," explains REE, noting that the project is already in an advanced state of development.
The listed company, 20% owned by the State through SEPI, also plans to renew the cabling that runs through the urban core of Barcelona, on the Badalona-Canyet, Badalona-La Sagrera, and Maragall-La Sagrera lines, all of them 220 kV. Oil cables will be replaced by dry cables. Another project involves reconfiguring the 220 kV network that connects with the Gramanet, Canyet, Sant Fost, Codonyers, and Sant Andreu substations. Likewise, the Abrera substation will be renovated to improve the electricity supply in the Martorell industrial estate, which has large electricity consumers such as Seat.
The new planning also includes the improvement of existing facilities and the replacement of old axes with new ones to improve electricity supply while minimizing impact on the territory. This is the case of the 220 kV Mangraners-Espluga-Begues line, between Lleida and Barcelona, which replaces the old existing line and already has a favorable environmental impact statement, granted by the Generalitat.
In Tarragona, new actions are being considered, such as the new Camarles 400 kV substation, in the Terres de l'Ebre; and the Escatron–Els Aubals–La Secuita project, consisting of the replacement of the current axis to improve electricity supply, consumption in the vicinity of Tarragona's chemical industrial park, and energy exchanges.
The 400 million budget also includes an improvement of the interconnection with Andorra by replacing an existing 110 kV line with a new 220 kV double circuit.
According to REE, one of the priorities of the new planning is to promote the development of renewable energies and the decarbonization of the current energy model so that by 2026 renewables account for 67% of the national electricity generation mix. The plan prioritizes making the most of existing electrical infrastructures to avoid further burdening the territory, so that only 13% of all renewable generation planned to connect before 2026 will require new transmission substations.
In this regard, in Catalonia, the Santa Llogaia substation (400 kV), in Girona, will be expanded to facilitate the connection of future offshore wind generation projects that may be developed on the Costa Brava.