Iberdrola plans Portugal’s first wind-hydro hybrid power project

Spanish renewable energy company Iberdrola has obtained final environmental approval from the Government of Portugal to build a 274 MW wind farm that would be incorporated into the existing Tâmega hydroelectric complex, making it the country’s largest hybrid energy project and the first to combine wind and hydropower.

Iberdrola hopes to obtain all permits and begin construction on the wind farm in early 2025. The Tâmega Eólico facility, at a site near the town of Vila Real in the northwestern district of Braga, should be able to produce enough electricity to supply 128,000 households, the company said.

Construction on the wind farm is expected to start in early 2025

Combining the two technologies significantly reduces dependence on changing environmental conditions and limitations due to possible lack of resources such as wind, Iberdrola said, noting it will facilitate more stable and efficient renewable energy production without overloading the electricity infrastructure.

The land that was already used for renewable generation and the two systems will share roads and facilities needed for operation, ensuring a much lower environmental impact compared to two independent plants, it added.

The Tâmega hydroelectric complex has a capacity of 1,158 MW

The Tâmega hydroelectric complex is one of the largest energy projects in the history of Portugal, with a total investment of over EUR 1.5 billion and an installed capacity of 1,158 MW, according to Iberdrola’s website. It includes the Gouvães pumped storage system of 880 MW.

Combining wind and hydro planned in Greece, Turkey

A similar hybrid power project is being developed in Greece, on the island of Crete. Two years ago, Terna Energy obtained a strategic investment status for its planned wind farm and a pumped storage hydropower system in the Amari area in Crete.

In late 2021, Turkish company Cengiz Enerji said it was collecting wind data in the vicinity of its hydro-solar hybrid power plant Lower Kaleköy with the ambition to add another energy source to the facility.