Iberdrola España and the Archbishopric of Madrid to create thirteen solar communities

• The installations, which generate 100% sustainable energy, will be located in thirteen parishes and will prevent 5,853 t./CO₂ in 30 years
• These infrastructures will allow more than 1,100 families to benefit from a 40% reduction in consumption and access to renewable self-consumption without making investments.

Antonio Armengot, Iberdrola's commercial delegate in Madrid, and José Luis Bravo, diocesan bursar of the Archbishopric of Madrid, during the signing of the agreement.

Iberdrola España and the Archbishopric of Madrid will develop thirteen solar communities External link, opens in new window. in different locations in the Community of Madrid, which will allow more than 1,100 families to reduce their consumption by up to 40% and have access to renewable self-consumption, without the need for their own installation or any kind of investment. 

This form of community self-consumption allows users to access 100% renewable energy generated from the roofs of thirteen parishes where more than 1,700 panels will be installed with a combined power of more than 800 kilowatts (kW), enough to produce more than 1,000 MWh annually. These photovoltaic installations will prevent the emission of more than 5,800 tonnes of CO₂ into the atmosphere over the next 30 years.

Thanks to the thirteen Solar CommunitiesExternal link, opens in new window. , more than 1,100 families within approximately two kilometres of one of the thirteen locations will be able to subscribe and save on their electricity bills by consuming locally some of the renewable energy produced by this installation. 

Antonio Armengot, Iberdrola España's commercial delegate in Madrid, highlights that this project "allows us to continue advancing in the supply of zero kilometre renewable energy, through an innovative solution that will help the Archbishopric of Madrid and more than 1,000 families in Madrid to promote sustainability while saving on their bills".

In the words of José Luis Bravo, diocesan bursar of the Archdiocese of Madrid, "The Archdiocese of Madrid shows great social commitment with each of the projects it develops. This agreement with Iberdrola España will allow us, in addition to contributing to sustainability by reducing the carbon footprint of families close to our parishes, to collaborate with the economy of the neighbourhood's residents".

Users can calculate economic and environmental savings and join the solar community through Solar Communities - IBERDROLA.

Promotion of self-consumption

As part of its commitment to accelerating the energy transition and developing new products to improve energy efficiency and savings, in 2015 Iberdrola España became the first company in its sector to integrate self-consumption solutions into its service offering. 

Today, eight years later, Iberdrola España has consolidated its position as the benchmark company in the sector with a 200% increase in its self-consumption portfolio by 2022. Through Smart Solar, External link, opens in new window. Iberdrola España offers services for all types of customers, from domestic consumers to large industrial customers.

The collective self-consumption solutions developed by Iberdrola España have made self-consumption available to any customer, whether or not they have their own roof, as currently in Spain more than two thirds of the population lives in high-rise buildings. Customers in this segment also benefit from the Solar Plan, a competitive electricity tariff during the hours when there is no sun, which is when they need to consume energy from the grid, as during the day they self-supply from their own installation. 

Self-consumption solar systems can mean an average saving on annual bills of 30% in the case of residents' associations; 50% for companies and businesses; and 70% in single-family homes. These savings are produced in three ways: the energy produced by the installation that the user does not have to buy, compensation for the surplus energy not consumed, which is fed into the grid, and savings due to lower taxes.

As for the possibility of compensating the energy dumped into the grid, Iberdrola España customers do not have any type of floor for its valuation, so that their bill can be zero euros. In addition, it has the Solar Cloud service, which, in the event that there are still surpluses, allows them to be diverted for consumption in another residence.