Spanish utility Iberdrola said on Thursday that it will invest €41bn ($44.54bn) to accelerate electrification and upgrade grids in various countries across the world.
The company said in a press statement that global electrification is now “unstoppable in all sectors”, driven by the decarbonisation of industrial processes and transport networks as the energy transition ramps up.
Highlighting the need for electricity networks to be upgraded to accommodate increasing capacity, Iberdrola said the investment will be focused on global electricity infrastructure to support decarbonisation and the growth of new sectors, particularly renewable energy and battery storage.
The €41bn investment includes the $2.5bn purchase of 18.4% of Avangrid announced earlier this month. A total of €21.5bn will go towards the expansion and strengthening of grid networks in the US, UK, Brazil and Spain, with assets in the US receiving 35% of the total investment.
Gross investment of €15.5bn, including €5bn contributed by partners in projects already identified, will go to renewables projects. More than 50% of this will go to developing offshore wind in the US, UK, France and Germany, the company said. All projects subject to funding are already under construction.
A further €1.5bn of investment will go to boosting global energy storage systems. The company plans to reach 120 million kilowatt-hours of pumped storage capacity over the next three years, an increase of 20%, giving greater stability to renewable energy output.
The investment plan builds on a strategic shift Iberdrola announced in 2022, when the company outlined plans to take a more selective approach to renewable energy projects. Italy's Enel made a similar business decision last year.
Iberdrola hopes to have an additional 3MW of offshore wind in operation by 2027, ramping up to 5GW by the end of the decade. It also has a target to boost solar and onshore wind capacity by 6GW by 2027. The company said that by 2030, it will have a total renewables pipeline of 100GW for future development.
Iberdrola executive chairman Ignacio Galan said: “The electrification of energy is unstoppable and will expand exponentially in the years ahead, supporting decarbonisation, boosting energy security and reducing the volatility caused by fossil fuels.
“Customers are already driving this change. People are not returning to fossil fuels after they move to electric. Those who flip from petrol to EVs [electric vehicles] do not move back, likewise for customers replacing gas boilers with heat pumps.
“Our strategy will focus on delivering enhanced grid to support security of supply, now 60% of our total investment, as well as a strong expansion of renewables capacity, driven by the substitution of fossil technologies and additional demand,” he added.
Last month, Iberdrola posted strong profits for 2023, ending the year on €4.8bn of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) and setting a total investment record of €11.38bn.
