Energy dismisses the 144 MW Alto Cabrera wind farm in León

The General Directorate of Energy Policy and Mines, of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, has dismissed the request from Enel Green Power España, S.L. for prior administrative authorization of the “Alto Cabrera” wind farm, with 144 MW of installed capacity, and its evacuation infrastructure in the provinces of León and Orense, agreeing to the archiving of file PEol-382. The resolution, signed on August 27, 2026, by the general director Manuel García Hernández, is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of León no. 180, of September 21, 2026, pages 64 to 73, with the official reference BOP-LE-2026-180026, within the section of State Administration – Government Sub-delegation in León.

A 144 MW project with expired permits

The promoter requested the prior administrative authorization on November 28, 2020, and the General Directorate admitted it for processing on December 9, 2020, forwarding the file on December 15, 2020, to the Industry and Energy Areas of the Government Sub-delegations in León and Orense. The project included:

• 33 kV underground interconnection lines from the wind turbines to the SET Alto Cabrera 33/220 kV substation.
• The SET Alto Cabrera 33/20 kV substation.
• The 220 kV overhead line between the SET Alto Cabrera 33/220 kV and the SE San Quereño 220 kV, owned by Red Eléctrica de España, S.A.U.
• Municipal boundaries of Encinedo and Benuza, in the province of León, and Carballeda de Valdeorras, in that of Orense.

The decisive point was the grid access: the permits were granted at the San Quereño 220 kV substation, but Red Eléctrica de España, S.A.U. notified the Ministry of their expiration on January 25, 2023, due to failure to meet milestone 2—obtaining a favorable environmental impact statement—a fact notified to the promoter on March 15, 2023.

Environmental inadmissibility, appeal, and withdrawal

The General Directorate of Environmental Quality and Assessment resolved on April 12, 2022, the inadmissibility for processing of the request to initiate the ordinary environmental impact assessment of the project, as it identified the three causes provided for in section 4 of article 39 of Law 21/2013, of December 9, on environmental assessment. On May 19, 2022, Enel Green Power España, S.L. filed an administrative appeal before the Secretary of State for the Environment, and on April 26, 2022, it was notified of the proposed resolution considering the promoter to have withdrawn its request, with a ten-day period to submit allegations.

The subsequent chronology closed the administrative route:

• May 10, 2022: the promoter submits allegations and requests the suspension of the process until the environmental resolution becomes final.
• May 8, 2026: given the impossibility of developing the installation, they withdraw the administrative appeal (recurso de alzada).
• May 13, 2026: they communicate their agreement with the proposed resolution and request its approval.
• July 6, 2026: they are notified of the hearing process for the updated proposal in file SGIISE/PEol-382.
• After fifteen business days, there is no record of a response from the promoter.

Legal basis and appeal process

The resolution is based on Article 53 of Law 24/2013, of December 26, on the Electricity Sector, which prevents the granting of administrative authorization for generation facilities without prior access and connection permits, and on Royal Decree 1955/2000, of December 1. Royal Decree-Law 23/2020, of June 23, sets a period of 31 months to obtain a favorable environmental impact statement and 34 months for the prior administrative authorization, calculated from June 25, 2020, and establishes the automatic expiration of permits if compliance is not proven. Article 23.6 of Royal Decree 1183/2020, of December 29, applies to the economic guarantees submitted.

Against this resolution, which does not exhaust administrative remedies, an administrative appeal (recurso de alzada) may be filed before the holder of the Secretary of State for Energy within one month from the day following its publication in the Official State Gazette (Boletín Oficial del Estado).

The archiving of PEol-382 nullifies an energy investment of 144 MW in northwestern León and on the border with Orense, in a region—that of Encinedo and Benuza—which is left without the economic and employment effects associated with the construction and operation of the plant. Furthermore, the decision confirms that the expiration of access permits due to failure to meet the milestones of Royal Decree-Law 23/2020 is sufficient grounds to scrap a project regardless of its environmental processing.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of León, no. 180, of September 21, 2026, State Administration – Government Sub-delegation in León, pp. 64-73 (official reference: BOP-LE-2026-180026).