MITECO launches pumped storage hydropower plant in Tenerife

Sara Aagesen, Vice President of the Government and Minister for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, stated: “It will serve the electrical subsystem of the islands of Tenerife and La Gomera, in a similar way to how the Salto de Chira dam will serve Gran Canaria: it will increase the penetration of renewable energy, reducing conventional thermal generation, carbon dioxide emissions, and electricity bills, and will increase security of supply.”

MITECO has begun processing the project after receiving documentation from the System Operator justifying the construction of the power plant. It has requested the corresponding reports analysing the future facility from the National Commission on Markets and Competition and the Government of the Canary Islands. After receiving these documents, it will submit the project to the Council of Ministers.

The location chosen for the project – which will be subject to the corresponding public information and participation procedures – will also undergo an environmental restoration process.

Like the Salto de Chira hydroelectric plant, the future Güímar plant will have 200 MW of turbine capacity and 220 MW of pumped storage, allowing it to store approximately 3200 MWh, enough to cover one-third of Tenerife's daily electricity demand. With a lifespan exceeding 75 years, the plant is expected to be fully opera-tional within 10 – 12 years, a typical timeframe for this type of infrastructure.

The plant involves an investment of around €1 billion, which will be amortised in a few years, as it will generate savings of around €200 million/y, by allowing an increase in renewable generation – which has doubled since 2018, going from covering 10.5% of the archipelago's electricity demand to covering 20.7% in 2025 – and the reduction of starts and stops of conventional generation.

The future pumping station in Güímar is a key piece for the decarbonisation of the Canary Islands' energy system and will allow a significant leap forward in the path towards achieving a 100% renewable energy model.

For more news and technical articles from the global renewable industry, read the latest issue of Energy Global magazine.

Energy Global's Winter 2025 issue

Don’t miss out on our final issue of Energy Global this year! The Winter issue begins with a regional report on Africa’s energy future, with articles on topics such as wind turbine components, geothermal drilling & operations and energy storage technology. With contributors including Magnomatics, Flyability, Bachmann electronic GmbH, NOV, and more, don’t miss out!

Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/other-renewables/02032026/miteco-launches-pumped-storage-hydropower-plant-in-tenerife/