Basque Country's distribution grid investment in Spain to exceed €153 million by 2027
en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 3, the Basque Autonomous Community government in Spain approved an increase in regional distribution grid investment for 2027. The grid reinforcement and digitalization investment undertaken by i-DE, the distribution operator owned by Iberdrola, will rise from the previously planned €110 million to €143 million; including metering facilities and related facilities financed by customers, total distribution grid investment in 2027 will exceed €153 million. According to figures released by the Basque government, the region's annual distribution grid investment scale has nearly doubled compared to the level planned two years ago.
This round of additional investment is mainly used for the expansion, modernization, and digitalization of the distribution grid in the Basque Country, with i-DE as the implementing entity. The Basque government directly links the new investment to industrial electricity demand in the coming years, stating that while the previously allocated €110 million for 2027 was necessary, it was insufficient to cover the projected growth in industrial electricity demand. Following this adjustment, the grid reinforcement and digitalization portion alone has increased by €33 million, an increase of approximately 30%; after including other metering and customer-financed facilities, the annual investment scale further exceeds €153 million.
This investment increase is directly related to regulatory adjustments in grid investment at the national level in Spain. On July 28, 2026, the Spanish government approved a new royal decree regulating investment and financing plans for transmission and distribution grids, providing the regulatory conditions for increasing related grid investment. The Basque government had previously submitted a request to Spain's Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge to expand transmission and distribution grid investment in the autonomous community, and this additional distribution grid investment has advanced following that regulatory adjustment.
Distribution grid investment is being coordinated with Spain's 2030 transmission grid development plan currently under preparation. The Basque government confirmed that the national 2030 transmission grid plan is still in the approval process, with particular attention focused on whether investment in new transmission capacity in the Basque Country during the next five-year period will ultimately be included in the final plan. The autonomous community government expects that Spain's Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge will submit the final version of the 2030 transmission grid plan, and subsequent new transmission network capacity will be implemented jointly with the distribution grid reinforcement projects confirmed this time.
At the implementation level, what has been confirmed this time is the increase in distribution grid investment quotas for 2027, of which €143 million corresponds to distribution grid reinforcement and digitalization projects implemented by i-DE; the total exceeding €153 million also includes metering facilities and customer-financed facilities. The national 2030 transmission grid plan and future investment in new transmission capacity in the Basque Country have not yet been finalized and still await formal approval of the relevant plans.
