The President of the Regional Government of Extremadura, Guillermo Fernández Vara; the Mayor of Plasencia, Fernando Pizarro; the Economic Affairs and Infrastructures Councillor of Extremadura, José Luis Navarro; the Managing Director of People and Resources of Gas Natural Fenosa, Rosa Mª Sanz; the Managing Director of Wholesale Businesses of Gas Natural Fenosa, Manuel Fernández; and the General Manager of Gas Natural Fenosa Renovables, Ana Peris, officially laid the first stone for the Merengue wind farm, the first to be built in the Autonomous Region of Extremadura.
The Merengue wind farm will consist of 15 wind turbines with an installed power capacity of 40 megawatts (MW) and will generate around 155 GWh per year, equal to the annual electricity consumption of 44,000 homes. It will therefore generate twice the annual electricity consumption of Plasencia.
The investment to be made by GAS NATURAL FENOSA in this project will amount to almost 40 million euros. The wind farm will create some 250 jobs during the construction, operation and maintenance stages. The building work is expected to conclude at the end of this year.
The Mayor of Plasencia, Fernando Pizarro, highlighted in his speech the importance of this wind farm and our commitment to renewable energies, as well as the investment in means for the city.
This infrastructure will enable a reduction in the use of other conventional sources to generate electricity, reducing CO2 emissions by around 120,000 tonnes per year as well as other environmentally harmful emissions.
By developing this project, the construction of which forms part of the 667 MW awarded during the new renewable power auction held by the Spanish Ministry of Energy, Tourism and the Digital Agenda (MINETAD) in May 2017, the company is confirming its commitment to Extremadura and will only strengthen that commitment in the future.
Besides the Merengue wind farm, Gas Natural Fenosa Renovables is developing other projects in Extremadura. These projects are currently in their administrative stages and include the Las Jaras photovoltaic power plant located between La Albuera and Badajoz with an installed power capacity of 50 MW, and the Miraflores photovoltaic power plant in Castuera, with an installed power capacity of 20 MW, among others that are under development.
Gas Natural Fenosa Renovables
Gas Natural Fenosa Renovables currently has a consolidated total installed capacity in operation of 1,147 MW in Spain (979 MW from wind, 110 MW from mini-hydroelectric plants and 58 MW from cogeneration and photovoltaics).
The company plans to build various renewables projects in various autonomous regions over the coming months that will double its size by the end of 2019.
