A 26.74 MW battery has been authorized in Andorra to hybridize Los Arcos

The Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge has granted Planta Solar OPDE 17, S.L. the prior administrative authorization and the administrative construction authorization for the battery storage module “Hibridación Los Arcos”, with an installed capacity of 26.74 MW, and its evacuation infrastructure, for its hybridization with the existing “Los Arcos” solar photovoltaic plant, of 43.90 MW. The decision, signed by the Director General of Energy Policy and Mines, Manuel García Hernández, is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Teruel no. 197, dated October 14, 2026, with the official reference No. 2026-2882 on page 2.

A single resolution for prior and construction authorization

The General Directorate of Energy Policy and Mines resolves both authorizations in a single act, invoking the principles of speed and procedural economy. The promoter had requested the file on June 5, 2025, and the reference execution project is the “Proyecto Ejecutivo Hibridación Fotovoltaica-Almacenamiento Los Arcos Hibridación”, dated February 25, 2026.

The applied regulatory framework is Royal Decree 1955/2000, of December 1, in its articles 127 and 131, together with article 53.1 of Law 24/2013, of December 26, on the Electricity Sector. The processing was handled by the Industry and Energy Area Department of the Government Sub-delegation in Teruel, which issued a report on June 16, 2026.

The existing photovoltaic plant is definitively registered in the Administrative Registry of Electric Energy Production Facilities under number RE-114015, and has access and connection permission at the Los Arcos 132 kV substation, owned by EDISTRIBUCION Redes Digitales, S.L. This company issued an update of the permits on September 25, 2025, to incorporate the battery module.

Technical characteristics of the storage system

According to the annex of the resolution, the main characteristics of the installation are:

• Storage type: lithium iron phosphate (LFP).
• Installed storage capacity: 26.74 MW, according to article 5 of Royal Decree 997/2025, of November 5.
• Batteries: 28 units of the SolBank 3.0 model from the manufacturer e-Storage (Canadian Solar), 1,250 kW each, with a total battery capacity of 35 MW.
• System duration: 4 hours; storage capacity: 140 MWh.
• Inverters: seven units of 3,820 kW of the PCSK FP3820K FRAME 4 model, totaling 26.74 MW.
• Transformer stations: seven 0.69/30 kV and 3.82 MVA units, from the manufacturer Power Electronics.
• Transformation capacity: 62.5 MVA.
• Generation access capacity: 40 MW; consumption access capacity: 0 MW.
• Affected municipal district: Andorra, in the province of Teruel.

Evacuation will be carried out via a 30 kV medium-voltage underground line to the existing substation SET Los Arcos 30/132 kV, using HEPRZ1 18/30 kV aluminum conductor from 240 to 630 mm². The expansion of the substation involves incorporating a new 30 kV line bay and adapting the protection, control, measurement, and telecommunications systems.

Environmental exemption, reports, and absence of allegations

Royal Decree 997/2025, of November 5, introduced an environmental assessment exemption for the hybridization of storage modules. The developer requested it on November 14, 2025, and the file followed the simplified procedure of article 6 of said regulation, with reduced deadlines.

The public information process was published on May 8, 2026, in the Official State Gazette (Boletín Oficial del Estado) and on May 11, 2026, in the Official Gazette of the Province of Teruel, without any allegations being received. The Directorate General of Public Health, the Directorate General of Energy and Mines, the State Road Demarcation in Aragon, EDistribucion Redes Digitales, S.L., and the Aragonese Institute of Environmental Management (INAGA) responded without opposition. The Andorra City Council and the Provincial Road Service of Teruel set technical conditions, which were accepted by the developer.

The Ebro Hydrographic Confederation, the Directorate General of Culture and Cultural Heritage, the Directorate General of Interior and Emergencies, the Aragon Territorial Planning Council (COTA), the Directorate General of Urbanism, the Provincial Urbanism Council of Teruel, the Provincial Council of Teruel, the Mining Section, the Energy Section, the Provincial Agrarian Chamber, and the Andorra-Sierra de Arcos Region did not respond; therefore, their conformity is understood in accordance with articles 127.2 and 131.1 of Royal Decree 1955/2000.

Conditions, deadlines, and appeal process

The construction authorization is granted under special conditions: the works must comply with the submitted project, the holder must notify the competent provincial body upon completion, and the authorization does not exempt the holder from other licenses, particularly those regarding industrial safety. Royal Decree-Law 7/2026, of March 20, allows for an extension of the deadline to be requested within three months, in no case exceeding December 31, 2030.

An administrative appeal (recurso de alzada) may be filed against the resolution, which does not exhaust administrative remedies, before the holder of the Secretary of State for Energy within one month from the day following its notification.

The authorization consolidates Andorra as a generation and storage hub in southern Aragón: it adds 140 MWh of backup capacity to a solar plant already in operation, reinforces the local distribution network, and subjects the land use and electrical infrastructures of the municipality to a new industrial file, the technical and environmental conditions of which are now established by ministerial resolution.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Teruel, no. 197, of October 14, 2026, Official Bodies, p. 2 (official reference: No. 2026-2882).