The market is showing great interest, with 25 GW of applications, 15 GW with access permits, and 10 GW with pending requests, according to data from Red Eléctrica España.

The storage goal is to reach 22.5 GW, of which 12.5 GW will be short-duration (batteries) and 10 GW long-duration, and the sector’s demand is clear: accelerate progress in capacity auctions and demand-side auctions, and establish uniform criteria for processing, mainly environmental, across all autonomous communities.

The regulation of storage in Spain involves addressing two distinct fronts: energy access and connection for generation and for demand, as a battery sometimes behaves like a generator, exporting energy to the grid, and other times as a consumer, importing energy from the grid.

Marcos Valles, Director of Quinto Armónico, advocates for the advancement of clear and flexible regulation regarding grid access.

One of the issues causing the most uncertainty is the wait for the generation capacity auctions, a mechanism driven by the government aiming to establish qualitative competition among developers based on environmental, social, and economic criteria.

In an interview with Energía Estratégica España, Valles states that although some auctions have already made progress, “deadlines continue to extend, with no clear implementation date.”

The Ministry for Ecological Transition estimates that the auctions could advance in early 2025, but the sector is still facing promises and unofficial dates that add uncertainty.

Additionally, the executive points out that the extension of administrative milestones with RDL 8/2023 has led to a “blockage” situation for new generation permits.

A similar situation is happening with demand capacity auctions, with more and more grid transport nodes where requests are “trapped” while waiting for the resolution of which projects will obtain the access rights for demand.

“Developers are still investing in advancing the projects they want to bring to the auctions to make them more competitive, but right now that only represents additional spending without concrete results in terms of capacity allocation,” he says.

Regarding demand, the recent Circular 1/2024 from the National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC) establishes a regulatory framework for granting demand permits, although further detailed specifications are still awaited to enable their effective application.

“The circular is a step forward, but the technical specifications needed for the operability of demand permits are still missing,” Valles highlights, clarifying that the utilities will publish the availability of demand capacity on their websites in the coming months after the details of the circular are finalized.

For the sector, this regulation, which will take effect on January 11, represents a significant opportunity.

“The flexible access proposed by this regulation is essential for storage, as it will allow batteries to consume energy during low-demand periods and discharge during consumption peaks, adapting to the market. However, for it to be effective, we need to have the Detailed Specifications,” explains the executive.

This will especially benefit battery developers who seek suitable conditions to maximize the profitability of their projects.

Uniform regulation for license processing

The lack of a homogeneous framework for the environmental processing of energy storage systems represents a significant obstacle for the sector in Spain, as each autonomous community applies its own criteria for evaluating projects.

While some regions require environmental reports that involve field studies on fauna, which delay processes by up to a year and are not significant for these types of technologies, others have adopted a more pragmatic approach focused on ensuring noise limits and fire safety.

These disparities increase development times and costs, generating uncertainty in projects and limiting the sector’s progress at a critical moment for the energy transition.

Currently, a stand-alone project can take between 18 and 24 months, with a reduction of up to 6 months in the case of hybridization with photovoltaic or wind plants that already have a connection permit for generation granted and are in an advanced installation processing stage.

In response to this situation, associations such as UNEF and AEPIBAL are leading efforts to unify the criteria for environmental evaluation and propose a regulatory framework that adapts to the specificities of each energy storage technology.

According to information obtained by Energía Estratégica España, the latest meeting of the Spanish Photovoltaic Union (UNEF) with the Energy Directors of each community specifically addressed this issue to facilitate the progress of battery projects that benefit the achievement of solar energy objectives.

In this regard, Marcos Valles reaffirms that the sector needs clear and consistent criteria to remove barriers and allow projects to advance.

“Without these changes, it will be difficult to meet energy demand and the expansion of photovoltaic energy,” he emphasizes.

With these advances and the regulatory deployment in 2025, the sector expects storage to help stabilize the grid and maximize the use of renewable energies, making the most of both solar hours and demand peaks.