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Iberdrola Plans $88 Billion of Investment in Energy Transition

Iberdrola Lays Out Plan to Triple Green Power Capacity by 2030

Iberdrola SA will invest 75 billion euros ($88 billion) through 2025, part of a program to triple its renewable energy capacity by the end of the decade and take advantage of a shift toward cleaner forms of energy.

The Spanish utility’s ambitions builds on a goal to make the company emissions free by the end of the decade in Europe, putting it at the vanguard of energy companies embracing ambitious goals for zeroing out fossil fuel pollution.

“The only way to supply all the world’s energy requirement and reach emission reduction targets is a very significant increase in the share of electricity as a percentage of total energy,” Chief Executive Officer Ignacio Galan said in a call with analysts on Thursday. “Iberdrola has been getting ready for this opportunity over the last two decades.”

Iberdrola will focus its investments on solar and offshore wind. It wants solar capacity to quadruple within the next decade, making up almost two-thirds of its additional installed capacity. Offshore wind is expected to grow seven-fold, while onshore wind is set to triple.

The goal is to reach 60 gigawatts of renewable capacity by 2025, up from 32 gigawatts last year, Galan said during the company’s capital markets day Thursday.

Beyond the 2025 numbers, he says they have identified 11 gigawatts of projects that will be under construction by 2025.

The company, which last month boosted its presence in the U.S. with the $4.3 billion acquisition of PNM Resources Inc., is hoping to capitalize on the energy transition and the push to cut greenhouse gas emissions in order to slow climate change.

“After 20 years of anticipating the energy transition, our business model positions us as a key agent in the transformation of the industrial fabric,” Galan said.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.