Study of renewable energy potential

Project context
The objective of this study was to define and calculate the energy potential in renewable energies of As Pontes, to maintain and enhance the role of the municipality as an energy pole of Galicia and Spain, in a “fair transition”. As a result, we’ve gathered sufficient information to assess the potential of the City Council before the promotion of new renewable energy sites. This makes it possible, to propose a series of measures to promote the use of renewable energies in this locality and the optimal zoning of the preferred areas for the installation of these infrastructures.

Soltec Ingenieros services
The study defines and calculates the energy potential from renewable energies existing in As Pontes. The study follows up the work carried out in 2020 through the ‘Municipal Eolic Energy Potential Analysis’ application for advice by the Council to the Technical Assistance Service to Municipalities from A Coruña.

We have based the definition of the existing energy potential on the natural resources available within the geographical limits of As Pontes Council. Our team mathematically parameterised these resources to obtain figures that accurately quantify today’s renewable energy capacity in that locality.

Based on the calculations made by Soltec Ingenieros, three scenarios have been presented, where the renewable energy potential and their actions are considered, listed below:

Floating photovoltaic energy: design of floating photovoltaic plants in Lake As Pontes and towards the end of Eume and Ribeira Reservoirs.

Photovoltaic energy on land: photovoltaic installations in the northern area of Lake As Pontes,
the industrial parks of Penapurreira, Maciñeira and Os Airíos, as well as in Canle IV and numerous public domain buildings in As Pontes.

Reservoirs: hydraulic use of existing facilities and a new smaller dam on the Ponte da Pedra river.

Mini hydraulic: mini hydraulic installation in the 4 mills that are currently unused, in the catchment of the Thermal Power Plant and the Brixeo and Chamoselo rivers. 

Forced pumping: start-up of forced pumping stations between Lake As Pontes and Ribeira reservoir; on the Maciñeira River; in Rego do Val, between mount A Caballeira and the Eume Reservoir and the pumping project itself proposed by ENDESA to be fully executed in the Lake.

Biogas: the transformation of agricultural waste and WWTP sludge into biogas for electricity generation. 

Geothermal: use of the geothermal gradient of the lake to solve the air conditioning of 50% of the houses in the urban centre of As Pontes. 

Wind energy: installation and startup of wind turbine parks in process, new requested parks and those already proposed. The activity of the existing ones is maintained.