EIB to Finance Construction of 21 Wind Farms in Spain

It is one of the biggest wind power infrastructure projects in Spain to date: the European Investment Bank (EIB) is financing construction of 21 wind farms in Andalusia, Asturias, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla León, Galicia and Navarra. These new wind farms will have a total capacity of 547 MW and will generate approximately 1.491 GWh of energy a year overall, a volume equivalent to the power use of 360 000 Spanish homes. It is one of the largest wind power projects financed by the EIB in Spain following its contribution to the financing of the Goya project.

These wind farms were winning bids in the renewable energy auction in July 2017, and have been developed by the Alfanar group. The EU bank will provide the project with several loans totalling up to EUR 385m for construction and implementation.

The loan was signed under the Investment Plan for Europe (known as the Juncker Plan) whose support increases the EIB Group’s capacity to finance investment projects that by their structure or nature have a higher risk profile. This project will not receive any public sector support and is one of the first to be implemented under the new regulatory framework for the industry approved in Spain in 2013.

EIB Vice-President Emma Navarro, who is responsible for climate action and the environment at the Bank, said: “We are delighted to support Spain’s huge renewable energy potential and help the country to meet its climate change targets. This project is a clear example of the EIB's priorities in Spain: promoting the transition to a low-carbon economy by supporting sustainable economic growth and job creation.”

Alfanar Global Development CEO Jamal Wadi added: “The financing of the first phase of Alfanar's portfolio of projects in Spain is a major milestone in our strategic plan, which will enable the implementation of new projects as part of our partnership with the EIB. We are delighted to have consolidated this agreement with the EIB following some very hard work over the last year.”