The planned investment of 1 billion euros could see 2,800 jobs created, bolstering the green economy and enable the islands to be at the forefront of renewable energy in Spain.
Iberdrola has announced it is planning the construction of an industrial-scale floating offshore wind farm in Spain and is searching for a possible location. With three contenders in mind, the Canary Islands sees itself competing against Andalucia and Galicia, the three autonomous regions with the highest quality wind in all of Spain.
However, the project is reliant on funds from the EU, if approved the study, design and engineering of the project could start this year, with the expected operational date being sometime in 2026. The planning and construction of the project would require the participation of 66 Spanish companies and technology centres, including 52 SMEs, generating around 2,000 jobs before it's operational. After this, the expectation is that the project would create 2,800 permanent and per year jobs.
The ultimate location of the farm and the distribution of power in the archipelago would be at the whim of the Canarian Government. José Antonio Valbuena, a counsellor in the Canarian government explained that the Government of the Canary Islands has on its roadmap to start the path towards the green economy because it is a great generator of economic activity and provides an important employment niche. "We are going to need more energy demand as the electric car is introduced in our lives. We have all the conditions to gradually reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, and offshore wind has a large storage capacity”.