Good start to the year for some in traditionally quiet period

Despite a market slow down in Spain (main story), some developers are putting in impressive performances. In the traditionally quiet first quarter of the year, three alone say they have put up 334 MW, or nearly 17% of Spain's entire new wind capacity over 2004. The developers are industrial groups Acciona and Elecnor together with utility Iberdrola.

Acciona has commissioned five plants totalling 163 MW: Vedadillo (50 MW) in Navarra; Rubió (50 MW) in Catalonia; Terral (27 MW) and Montemyor Sur (12 MW) in Galicia and Alijar (24 MW), a 50-50 joint venture with Becosa in Andalucía. Elecnor's renewables wing, Enerfin, has commissioned 116 MW since January, bringing its online portfolio to 388 MW, of which it directly owns around 55%. Enerfin owns 80% of Aerosur, which has just connected the 54 MW Pasada de la Tejada y Las Herrerías project in Andalucía. The remaining 20% belongs to turbine manufacturer Ecotècnia, which supplied its 1.6 MW machine. The same turbine has gone to the first two stages of Enerfin's Faro-Farelo development (62 MW), just commissioned in Galicia. Enerfin is already building the third and fourth stages, which will bring total capacity to 128 MW before the end of the year, according to boss Guillermo Planas.

Utility Iberdrola, connected five developments totalling 55 MW to end March 2005 in Castile and León and Castile-La Mancha, where it has grid connection licenses for at least another 200 MW.