Austria's Verbund buying 4.5-GW solar, wind platform in Spain

May 9 (Renewables Now) - Austrian power producer Verbund AG (VIE:VER) said today it has acquired 82 MWp of operating solar parks in Spain and a development platform filled with some 4,500 MW of renewable energy projects in the Iberian country.

The portfolio is being sold by funds managed by Q-Energy Private Equity for an undisclosed amount, the buyer said in a bourse filing.

The project platform consists of wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) projects of which 2,100 MW are in an advanced stage of development and the rest 2,400 MW are greenfield schemes. Most of the projects included in the bundle are located in the Castilla–La Mancha region of Central Spain and in Andalusia, in the southern part of the country.

Apart from the platform, Verbund has taken possession of the project development team.

The Vienna-based energy company entered the Spanish market in 2021 when it bought a 147.6-MWp solar project from renewable energy firm BayWa r.e. Earlier this year, it acquired 70% of a portfolio of five wind and solar projects totalling 171 MW from local project developer Capital Energy.

Verbund aims to boost its solar and onshore wind capacity so that they account for between 20% and 25% of its overall generation mix in 2030. Currently, more than 95% of the electricity produced by the company comes from hydropower plants in Austria and southern Germany.