Concern about the energy effects of drought. The lack of rain and the resounding fall of the Spanish reservoirs have consequences for energy production. It just became known that a hydroelectric plant in Catalonia has ceased its activity permanently due to lack of water, but the worst thing is that others could follow their path. At the moment, the production of energy from this clean source has already fallen by half so far this year, which forces us to use fossil fuels, precisely when they should be avoided the most.
The Rialb hydroelectric plantin Lleida, stopped all its activity permanently on Wednesday at the request of the Ebro Hydrographic Confederation. Its reservoir is below 7% of its capacity, when just a year ago it exceeded 49%.
is the This is the first time that the plant has closed since at least 2009, when Acciona began to manage this swamp. The Lleida facility has two turbines capable of generating 24.8 and 5.9 megawatts (MW) per day, respectively. The energy that cannot be produced with this plant will be supplied with other sources, as indicated by the company.
The truth is that the Rialb reservoir is the one located in the worst state of Catalonia: the internal basins of the community, managed by the Catalan Water Agency, are at 39% of their capacity (a year ago, at 74.2%), while those that depend on the Ebro Hydrographic Confederation are at in 41.82% (66% twelve months ago). This is a general situation throughout the country. And this is demonstrated by the latest published data.
The reservoirs of Spain they are 20 points below what they should at this time of year (the worst figure since 1995): 36.9%, a figure that last year stood at 44%. The worst part of this drought is taken by the Guadalquivir Valley (22.5%).
The stoppage of the Rialb hydroelectric plant is only a preview of what may come. And it is that the situation is worrying in these installations that generate clean electricity in Spain, due to the drought. Their production in the country as a whole has fallen to its lowest level in more than 30 yearsaccording to official statistics.
Hydropower has fallen by half
So far this year, Spanish hydroelectric plants (which generate electricity through their waterfalls) provide half the energy they did last year. Specific, energy production from reservoirs has been halved compared to last year. It was 52.8% lower in July 2022 in mainland Spain than that same month a year earlier. From January to July 2022, the decrease in the production of hydraulic energy was 49.5% compared to the same period in 2021, indicates the monthly bulletin of Red Eléctrica Española (REE).
This situation forces combined cycle plants to have to burn more gas to compensate for this reduction, which returns the leading role to hydrocarbons. Drought, therefore, not only consists of a lack of water or damage to agriculture, but also affects the generation of clean energy.
The REE data show how essential it is that there is water in the reservoirs to cover the electricity demand of mainland Spain. For example, last year, hydraulic energy covered 11.9% of the peninsular electricity demand. In fact, it was the third largest source only after wind (23.9%) and nuclear (21.8%), which gives an idea of its importance.
According to data published by the Maldita.es portal, the year-on-year hydraulic production could be at the end of August the lowest, at least, since 1999. “For months we have been seeing the drop in generation from the hydroelectric plant. It is not just a summer or punctual descentare downward values maintained for weeks & rdquor ;, explains Marcial González, from the Department of Electrical Engineering of the Carlos III University of Madrid and also a member of Bendita Energía.
Globally, approximately 26% of existing hydroelectric dams and 23% of projected reservoirs are in river basins that currently have a medium to very high risk of water scarcity, indicates a study published in 2022 in the magazine Toilet. Its authors estimate that between 61 and 74% of hydroelectric plants will have generation problems due to lack of waterwhich opens a worrying panorama.
This situation could affect the price of electricity bills starting in the fall (since in summer these installations usually produce little energy), according to the experts. It is a cheap production system that, if it is partially cancelled, forces the use of fossil fuels, at a higher cost.
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