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ENVIRONMENT-SPAIN: Offshore Wind Power for Earthly Benefits

Tito Drago

MADRID, Aug 9 2007 (IPS) - A boost for renewable energy, a growing sense of corporate responsibility for the environment, and the decision to create a large offshore wind park are news items that have had little impact in Spain.

The wind farm in Spain, already one of the world’s leaders in wind energy, is to be installed between Barbate and Conil, close to the strait of Gibraltar in the south.

The project involves installing 273 wind turbines on platforms in shallow waters of the Atlantic Ocean, where they will be barely visible from the Spanish coast. They will produce 980 megawatts, about the same amount of energy as a nuclear power plant, and supply electricity to some 700,000 homes.

The conditions the state will impose on the private company that builds the wind park have not yet been decided, and the work has not yet been licensed. However, everything points to Acciona Energía, the leading company in the renewable energy sector, winning the contract.

A decree published in the Official Bulletin on Aug. 2 says that these conditions will be determined by the end of the year, and will enter into force on Jan. 1, 2008.

Companies must apply for a block of seabed, in the same way as for mineral exploration. Studies must also be performed on various aspects of the area, including impacts on the environment, fishing activity, historical heritage, and undersea cables and pipes.

Greenpeace’s climate change campaign coordinator for Spain, Raquel Montón, told IPS that her organisation views the project very positively. They have been calling for it for years, she said, and it is one of the most promising, "although it could be improved."

For example, she said, instead of proposing that these projects should be adapted to the present power grid, the opposite should be the case, with the infrastructure being adapted to the energy generated by the wind park.

Wind energy is more expensive to produce than energy from traditional sources, she added, but instead of planning to surcharge wind energy, the tariffs for traditional sources of electricity should include their environmental costs.

The environmental costs will have to be paid for sooner or later, "and it’s the energy companies that should pay for them, not the state, which means the country’s citizens," she said.

Montón mentioned the subsidies that the state has promised to pay to companies that instal wind parks. Greenpeace is demanding that traditional generators of energy should include in their charges the environmental damage they cause, which would raise the final price of their energy to that of wind energy.

Whatever the prices charged, investment in wind turbines will always be cheaper and more affordable for society and the environment than consuming carbon, oil or natural gas, because wind energy does not emit carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, as burning fossil fuels does, the activist said.

Greenpeace estimates the offshore wind energy generation potential of Spain at around 16,000 megawatts. The new technology is already used in European countries such as Denmark, the United Kingdom, Sweden, the Netherlands and Ireland.

According to the experiences of the Netherlands and Denmark, offshore wind farms help preserve fish populations, because fishing fleets find it difficult to navigate these areas and, indeed, they may be prohibited from doing so. Environmentalists also point out that sea birds are not affected, as they can see the wind turbines in time to avoid them.

CEO of Acciona Energía Esteban Morrás said that his company backs renewable energy sources.

He has no doubt that Spain is capable of meeting the goal set by the European Union, for 20 percent of energy to be derived from renewable sources by 2020, and said that wind power will play a major role.

Putting wind turbines offshore is more expensive than installing them on land, but it makes good sense because average winds at sea are 50 percent stronger than on land.

Another piece of positive news has to do with industry’s attitude to the environment. One example is Inditex, a large garment production and sales network. CEO Pablo Isla denied that eco-friendly measures applied on their premises are a publicity stunt to enhance their image.

Their aim, he said, is to cut energy consumption at their premises by 20 percent, which will result in benefits to the environment. This energy saving is being achieved by waiving employees’ obligation to wear a coat and tie when serving customers, which allows less air conditioning to be used, reducing electricity costs.