UPDATE - Spain's El Hierro island hits 24 days of 100% renewables supply

Renewables covered 100% of power demand on the smallest of the Canary Islands, El Hierro, for 596.3 hours in a row, or more than 24 days in total, between July 13 and August 7.

The previous such record was of 18 days between July 15 and August 2, 2018.

Spanish grid operator Red Electrica de Espana (REE) said on Friday that El Hierro has gone without any fossil fuels for 1,119.56 hours year to date. This has been made possible by the Gorona del Viento wind power-based pumped-hydro system, which combines an 11.5-MW wind farm of five turbines and a pumped-storage hydropower facility.

Back in 2014, before Gorona del Viento started operation, the island’s renewables share was 2.2%. The wind-and-hydro facility was brought live in 2015 and quickly lifted the green power share for the year to 19.5%. That has been growing steadily in 2016, 2017 and 2018 to 40.8%, 46.5% and 56.5%, respectively.

The renewables share so far in 2019 is 53.8%, REE calculates.

Gorona del Viento is run by Gorona del Viento El Hierro SA, in which the island’s government body El Cabildo de El Hierro holds a 65.82% stake. Spanish power utility Endesa SA (BME:ELE) controls 23.21%, while the Technological Institute of the Canary Islands and the Canary Islands government hold 7.74% and 3.23%, respectively.

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