Red Eléctrica, the subsidiary of Redeia responsible for operations and electricity transmission in Spain, will start operating the new 220 kV El Zumajo-Puerto Real line in the coming weeks, once the operating authorisation has been granted by the Office of the Department of Industry, Energy, and Mines in Cadiz.

This line, along with the new sub-station of El Zumajo (in Vejer de la Frontera, Cadiz), is part of a series of investments made by Red Eléctrica that are intended to improve the security of the electricity supply and increase the connection capacity of the electricity transmission grid in the Bay of Cadiz. 

The General Secretary for Energy of the Department of Industry, Energy, and Mines of the Regional Government of Andalusia, Manuel Larrasa, the Delegate of the Regional Government in Cadiz, Mercedes Colombo and the Territorial delegate for Economy, Finance, European Funds, Industrial Policy, and Energy of the Regional Government in Cadiz, Inmaculada Olivero, visited the new installations this Tuesday in the company of Red Eléctrica’s regional delegate in Andalusia, Jorge Jiménez, and the director of the Red Eléctrica project, Dolores López Menchero.

The series of facilities planned for the Bay of Cadiz as part of the Transmission Grid Plan 2021-2026 is intended to reinforce the electricity supply through the new El Zumajo-Puerto Real line and the El Zumajo sub-station.

The planning also includes the following electrical infrastructure: the 220 kV El Zumajo-Gazules line, the 220 kV Puerto de Santa María-Cartuja line, the compacting of lines in the 220 kV Puerto Real and Puerto de Santa María sub-station, and the expansion of the sub-station of Puerto Real. All of these infrastructure projects are now operational. Also included is the 220 kV Cartuja-Puerto Real line, which is expected to enter service at the end of 2025.

Altogether, the total investment dedicated to these infrastructures amounts to 32.4 million euros, 15 of which correspond to the El Zumajo-Puerto Real line (which is now entering service). 

These new developments are intended to respond to the electricity needs of Puerto Real and to cover the industrial and urban demand for electricity from the towns around the Bay of Cadiz, supporting their business activities and the creation of jobs in the area. There will also be increased support for the medium voltage grid across a wide area between Vejer and Puerto Real.

The new El Zumajo-Puerto Real power line is 40 kilometres long (38 double-circuit and 2 single-circuit) and runs entirely within the province of Cadiz, through the municipal areas of Chiclana, Vejer, Conil, and Puerto Real. Construction of the line has required 24 months of work, following a long and complex authorisation process by the Regional Government of Andalusia’s Department of Industry, Energy, and Mines, which has ensured its adaptation to the region in technical, social, and environmental terms.