Iberdrola strengthens ties with Lula and will invest more than 5 billion in Brazil

The chairman of Iberdrola, Ignacio Galán, has committed to invest 30 billion reais ( around 5.3 billion euros) over the next three years in the country to continue developing new renewable and grid projects, as well as to make the most of the opportunities offered by technologies such as offshore wind power and green hydrogen.

This was announced during a visit to the company's first hybrid complex in Brazil, where he was accompanied by the President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, to whom he assured that the company will be a "faithful" ally in the country's energy transition .

The Neoenergia Renewable Energy Complex, which they both visited on Wednesday, integrates for the first time the generation of wind and solar energy in the country, thanks to the Chafariz wind farm and the Luzia photovoltaic plant.

With an investment of 630 million euros, it will supply clean energy to 1.3 million homes, with a capacity of 600 megawatts (MW), which will avoid the emission of more than 100,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year.

The facility consists of 15 wind farms with a total of 136 wind turbines - with an installed capacity of 471.2 MW - and two Neoenergia Luzia solar plants, with 228,000 panels and an installed capacity of 149.2 MWp.

"Making projects like this a reality requires political leadership capable of establishing long-term planning, a clear energy policy and a stable and encouraging regulation," commented Iberdrola's chairman.

In addition, as explained by Iberdrola, the complex has also generated socioeconomic benefits for the region, training around 180 people as bricklayers, carpenters and blacksmiths and training another 150 people to assemble metal structures for solar panels.

In turn, of the more than 3,600 direct and indirect jobs created, 40% have been filled by local workers.