The Diplomat
Iberdrola, through its subsidiary Scottish Power, will boost its investment commitment to the United Kingdom in the coming years to around 12,000 million pounds (13,823 million euros) in the period 2024-2028, the British government and the company announced.
The announcement of the investment, which represents a clear commitment to the UK, where the company chaired by Ignacio Sánchez Galán was already very present, was made in the framework of the Global Investment Summit held in London, promoted by the British government and its Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak.
Just one day ago, Sunak announced commitments for private investment in the UK, including a new £7,000 million, or 8,055 million euros, from Iberdrola, in addition to the £6,700 million committed for 2023-2025. This year alone Iberdrola earmarked more than 2,000 million pounds (around 2,300 million euros) in investments, mainly in electricity grids and renewable projects, according to the company.
Iberdrola’s commitment to the UK is reinforced by this investment of almost 14,000 million euros, a plan that allowed Ignacio Sánchez Galán to state that the company “is proud to contribute to the UK’s leadership in energy security and decarbonisation”.
After recalling that, over the last 15 years, the company “has invested close to £30,000 million (around 35,000 million euros) to bring the benefits of cleaner, safer and more efficient energy to all Britons”, he said: “With stable and predictable regulatory frameworks in the UK, we are more committed than ever to continue driving our investments in networks and renewables to further promote the energy transition and the achievement of the country’s climate goals”.
The UK Global Investment Summit aims to encourage foreign investment in the UK. It has been attended by the world’s top business leaders, including Sánchez Galán, whose agenda included meetings with the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, the Minister for the Economy, Jeremy Hunt, the head of Energy Security and Net Zero, Claire Coutinho, and the Minister for Business and Trade, Kemi Badenoch.
In addition, Iberdrola’s chairman will attend the reception hosted by King Charles III at Buckingham Palace.
In the note, the Spanish company indicates that about two-thirds of the amount it will invest in the United Kingdom between the next financial year and 2028 will be allocated to transmission and distribution networks, with a “prominent” project: the Eastern Green Link 1 (EGL1) submarine transmission cable, which will involve a total investment of 2,700 million pounds, more than 3,100 million euros.
Construction of EGL1 will begin in early 2024 and once completed it will be able to carry enough renewable energy to serve two million homes, while increasing the resilience of the UK’s transmission grid.
Iberdrola, the world’s second largest electricity company by market capitalisation, with a value of around 72,000 million euros, says it will continue to invest in its East Anglia 3 offshore wind farm, onshore wind and solar projects, energy trading and the development of green hydrogen.
The announced investments could be further increased with additional offshore wind opportunities, it adds, indicating, as an example, that the East Anglia 1 North and East Anglia 2 projects are eligible to participate in future auctions.
