Spain says first offshore wind auction could be launched this year

en.Wedoany.com Reported - Spain's Third Vice President and Minister for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica y el Reto Demográfico), Sara Aagesen, stated this Thursday that there is still "room" to launch the country's first offshore wind auction within this year. After presenting the new 400 kV power interconnection project between Spain and Portugal, she responded to media questions about the location of the pilot floating offshore wind auction, saying that no final decision has been made on whether the auction will take place in the Canary Islands or Galicia, as all feedback collected still needs to be analyzed.

Aagesen emphasized that the first auction will select areas with the "highest acceptance" of offshore wind, and will consider local support and the endorsement of citizens who genuinely back offshore wind as fundamental conditions for the final implementation of the projects. She reiterated that launching these auctions is a goal set by the government. In February of this year, the ministry initiated a preliminary public consultation on the decree establishing the rules for the first offshore wind auctions. According to the relevant text, the future competitive process will grant priority rights to the economic regime, grid connection capacity reservations, and concessions for the use of the public maritime-terrestrial domain.