Pumped Storage Hydro

Iberdrola inaugurates Tâmega Gigabattery hydroelectric complex in Portugal

Iberdrola inaugurates Tâmega Gigabattery hydroelectric complex in Portugal
Construction on the Tamega hydro complex (photo courtesy Iberdrola)

The Prime Minister of Portugal, António Costa, and the Chairman of Iberdrola, Ignacio Galán, have inaugurated the 1,158 MW Tâmega Gigabattery in Portugal.

Tamega is a large hydroelectric storage project that required nearly eight years to construct at a total investment of more than €1.5 billion ($1.5 billion).

The Tâmega complex on the Tâmega river, a tributary of the Douro, is made up of three plants — Alto Tâmega, Daivões and Gouvães. The Alto Tâmega portion of the complex is scheduled to be complete in 2024. Iberdrola reported in January 2022 that it had synchronized the first turbine-generator unit at the 880 MW Gouvães pumped storage hydroelectric plant. The Daivões plant also is complete.

Together, these plants will increase total electrical power installed in Portugal and avoid the emission of 1.2 million tons of CO2 per year. The complex is capable of storing 40 million kWh. Iberdrola said the complex employed several thousand people during construction and will prevent the importation of more than 160,000 tons of oil per year.

Galán said this infrastructure shows that the two great goals of Europe’s energy policy, energy independence and decarbonization, are perfectly compatible as long as work is done on the electrification of the economic and productive system.

During his inaugural speech, Galán also announced the company will be able to double the investments made in the Gigabattery in the coming years, reaching €3 billion ($3 billion), which it will allocate to new wind farms and solar plants already under development or construction.