- After the legal deadline, the Department of Economic and Business Development of the Government of Navarra has reported on the plants that have been subject to Prior Administrative Authorization: 17 wind farms and 17 photovoltaic, most of them in the south of Navarra. The total power of the plants would be 1,314 MW.
The Government of Navarra has authorised 34 renewable projects, 17 wind power plants plus 17 solar or photovoltaic parks. These projects have Environmental Authorization and Prior Administrative Authorization.
The legal deadline for the adoption of energy measures was 24 April, according to a legislative decree approved by the Government of Spain in 2020, and the Government of Navarre has chosen the following day to provide data on authorised plants.
The new wind power plants in Navarra will have a total power of 430 MW and the photovoltaic plants 894 MW. Thus, the total power will be 1,314 MW: "Navarra will double the capacity to generate solar and wind energy", explains in the note the executive of María Chivite.
Known surnames, business owners
Among the plants they want to build, the government has announced that there will be a "hybridization" that combines wind and solar energy, and that it will be more efficient: "Because in the same space and with the same evacuation infrastructures you can generate more energy".
This hybridization park, called Corral del Molino I, is located in Corella. But according to the list issued by the Government of Navarra it will generate barely 2.8 MW of energy. In the same locality, five other solar macroplants and a wind farm called Corral del Molino I of 23.2 MW of power are planned.
Behind the projects of Corella, Fontellas, Ablitas and Tudela is the company Enerfin, which is doing business with renewables around the world, and the subsidiary of Elecnor
Behind this latest project is the company Enerfin, which is doing business with renewables around the world, and the subsidiary of the Elecnor Group. Elecnor owns the famous names of Bizkaia and Andalusia, directly linked to the dictatorship during Franco, founders of financial and industrial companies such as BBVA, Tubing Reunidos, Careaga, Moyua, Arteche or Ybarra.
Near threatened bird shelters
Enerfina, in addition to Corella, has renewable projects in other places in southern Navarra, such as Tudela, Fontellas and Ablitas. For this purpose, it obtained a loan of EUR 136 million in 2022.
For example, in the collado de El Volandin, between Fontellas and Ablitas, this company intended to install 12 large wind mills with capacity to generate 50 MW, but the environmental authorization report forced to reduce the number of windmills to nine, due to the influence they would have on several species. Not far away is Lake Lor de Ablitas, one of the most important in Navarre and winter residence of many threatened bird species.
Most of the photovoltaic and wind power plants authorised by the Government of Navarra are located in the south of Navarra. The Subai Foundation, in its report on renewables published in 2022, pointed out that the plants intend to establish themselves in areas of Navarra Media and Ribera, already exploited with this type of infrastructure: "With these wind forests, above all, we are facing a greater saturation that affects both birds".