Authorized Substation for Data Center in Badajoz, Spain to Supply 300 MW of Self-Consumed Photovoltaic Power

en.Wedoany.com Reported - The Dirección General de Industria de la Junta de Extremadura has granted prior administrative authorization for the supporting power infrastructure of the Nostrum Evergreen data center located at the Plataforma Logística de Badajoz. The data center campus is situated within the Plataforma Logística del Suroeste Europeo and covers an area of approximately 222,735 square meters.

The project is promoted by Data Riocaya, a subsidiary of Nostrum Group (formerly Ingenostrum), which is now owned by the Australian multinational IREN (formerly the technology operator Iris Energy). The project is expected to involve an investment of 1.9 billion euros and will create a comprehensive facility centered on artificial intelligence and high-density computing.

The electrical engineering design for the campus proposes an initial calculated power consumption of 300 MW, with a scalable plan expected to reach 500 MW by 2031. The developer has also confirmed that the project land is owned by the group, and that Red Eléctrica de España (REE) has granted grid access through the Río Caya substation.

To meet this electricity demand, the transmission and transformation works disclosed in the administrative authorization document consist of three components.

First, a new 400/220 kV interconnection substation will connect the campus to the national transmission grid via the Río Caya node.

Second, power supply will be delivered through two 220 kV high-voltage underground lines with route lengths of 3,342 meters and 3,276 meters respectively, using insulated aluminum conductors and fully buried along the entire route.

Third, an internal substation named DC Badajoz will be built, with a rated voltage of 220/20 kV, initially equipped with six power transformers each with a capacity of 110/150 MVA; two additional transformers of the same capacity are planned for a later industrial development phase. The substation will have two 220 kV incoming bays reserved specifically for future self-consumption generation.

The reserved incoming bays correspond to a dedicated 300 MW photovoltaic plant, which will require a photovoltaic array of approximately 350 MWdc on the DC side. Most of the electricity generated is expected to be consumed on-site by the data center servers, reducing dependence on the public distribution grid and utilizing local renewable energy. As an independent power generation project, this photovoltaic plant is currently awaiting administrative approval. The project has also been recognized by the Junta de Extremadura as a "Proyecto Empresarial de Interés Autonómico" (Business Project of Autonomous Interest), which will accelerate approval as a public utility project to meet the urgent requirements of industrial development in the region.