EDP has presented the state in which the transformation project of Los Barrios power plant currently is to Miguel Alconchel, mayor of Los Barrios (Cádiz). The main innovation, and proof of the realism and maturity of the project, is the start of the environmental procedures for the first phase of 130 MW of electrolyzers, which will imply an investment of 195 million euros.

EDP’s Director of Hydrogen Projects Development and Execution, Rafael Cabañeros, has presented the progress of the energy company’s initiative at the Los Barrios Town Hall. The presentation was also attended by Francisco Javier Rodríguez Ros, subdelegate of the Junta de Andalucía in Campo de Gibraltar.

The documentation submitted for this environmental process includes two main phases. The first one, of 130 MW, which the company would put into service in the first months of 2026, and a second phase, if market conditions are favorable, in which a total capacity of 500 MW of electrolyzers would be reached at the site, which would be in service by the end of 2030. The process will follow the guidelines of the Accelerator Unit of the Junta de Andalucía.

The objective is the production of green hydrogen, whose electricity supply will come from renewable energy generation plants (onshore wind and solar). Green hydrogen, produced by electrolysis from water molecules and electricity from renewable sources, is presented as key energy vector for the decarbonization of sectors that are difficult to electrify, such as the steel industry and other industrial and transport sectors, and as a clean raw material for the manufacture of fertilizers, for example.

During the meeting, the mayor of Los Barrios, Miguel Alconchel, said that "it is a satisfaction to see how this project is progressing, which will be pioneering and places Los Barrios at the spearhead of the ecological transition. We are going to become a reference municipality in green energy and green hydrogen. The current energy transition opens the way to a 100% clean, sustainable and fair economy, in addition to the importance of creating new jobs so necessary in the area," he added.

For his part, Rafael Cabañeros highlighted that "at EDP we are working on a realistic project to transform our thermal power plants with the firm intention of leading the energy transition in a fair and inclusive way, leaving no one behind, with initiatives such as the one we want to develop in Los Barrios, with a tractor effect on the economy, with a positive local impact and generating quality employment".

EDP's project has been considered strategic for the energy transition by the European Commission, considering it an Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI Hy2Use).

In addition, it is one of the initiatives awarded grants by the IDAE (Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving), within the PERTE for renewable energies, renewable hydrogen and storage (ERHA), corresponding to the Pioneer Projects program.

EDP, which maintains its firm ambition to abandon coal production by 2025, has a realistic project to transform its thermal power plants into 'green hubs' linked to four energy axes: green hydrogen, energy storage, renewable energies and flexibility of the electricity system.

These projects are part of EDP's Business Plan for the period 2023-2026, through which it plans to make investments of 25 billion euros to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy 25 billion to accelerate the deployment of renewable energies, the flexibility of the electricity system and the design of innovative solutions for its customers.