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The company plans to achieve “no net loss” of biodiversity by 2030, by committing to the net positive impact of new infrastructure developments

2021-05-13 00:00:00.0

Iberdrola is looking for collaborative solutions to combine agriculture and livestock farming in photovoltaic plants

Combinación de plantas fotovoltaicas con usos agrícolas y ganaderos

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Through its international start-up programme, PERSEO, Iberdrola is seeking environmentally friendly solutions to combine the deployment of solar farms and primary sector activities in rural areas in a sustainable way

Iberdrola takes another step forward in its commitment to preserve the biodiversity of the surroundings of its renewable energy projects. To this end, the company has launched a new challenge – through its international start-up programme PERSEO – to identify competitive and innovative solutions to combine solar photovoltaic generation plants with activities related to agriculture, horticulture, livestock raising, fish farming and beekeeping, in order to improve the use of the land.

The energy company is seeking innovative solutions that allow for complementarity and the creation of synergies between land used for primary sector activities and solar photovoltaic installations, so that the local economy can be boosted. This is known as agrovoltaics. The projects are particularly focused on regions that are addressing the demographic challenge, while continuing to fight climate change and supporting the energy transition.

The assessment of the proposals will take into account the costs, the maturity and suitability of the project, the diversity of crops that can be planted, the positive impact on agricultural or livestock productivity and the degree of digitisation of the proposal to optimise efficiency, as well as other variables.

Proposals may be submitted up to and including 10 June and the winner will be announced in September.

Project support

Iberdrola will provide the winner of the challenge with technical and financial support to test its solution. In addition, it will provide technical support to test its solution, giving it access to the resources necessary to validate it (equipment, teams, infrastructures, high-tech sites and co-working areas), as well as offering a real environment and real data to test the solution.

If the pilot project is successful, Iberdrola may also offer the participant the opportunity to scale up the solution by adopting it through commercial agreements and PERSEO may even consider investing in the company that wins the challenge.

Competitive and sustainable energy and environmental balance

Iberdrola has fully integrated the conservation of the biological diversity of ecosystems into its strategy, demonstrating that competitive, clean and sustainable energy supply can effectively coexist with environmental balance.

The company plans to achieve “no net loss” of biodiversity by 2030, by committing to the net positive impact of new infrastructure developments.

Iberdrola has carried out more than 1,450 actions to protect biodiversity in the last three years, combining the installation of renewable projects with the conservation of the biological diversity of ecosystems, looking after flora, fauna and natural heritage. The most recent project was the installation of beehives in photovoltaic projects to preserve biodiversity and promote the circular economy.

The company is aligned with the compliance of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) directly related to nature (SDGs 6, 13, 14 and 15) and works to promote economic and social development while respecting the environment.

Perseo: more than 10 years of innovation

PERSEO, Iberdrola's international start-up programme, aims to facilitate the group’s access to the technologies of the future and foster the creation and development of a global and dynamic ecosystem of technology companies and entrepreneurs in the electricity sector. For this, in addition to the 70 million euros allocated to the initiative, a further 40 million euros have now been allocated to launch, through its Perseo Venture Builder unit, innovative industrial companies working in new areas of electrification and in sectors that are difficult to decarbonise.

Since its creation in 2008, PERSEO has invested 70 million euros in start-ups that develop innovative technologies and business models, focusing on those that improve the sustainability of the energy sector through greater electrification and decarbonisation of the economy.

The programme has focused its actions on analysing business opportunities and technological collaboration with start-ups and emerging companies around the world, analysing 300 companies each year and creating an ecosystem of almost 3,000 entrepreneurial companies. This investment instrument currently has a portfolio of eight companies.

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About Iberdrola

Iberdrola is one of the world’s principal energy companies, a leader in renewables, and is spearheading the energy transition towards a low-emission economy. The group supplies energy to around 100 million people and has renewable, grid and commercial activities in Europe (Spain, the UK, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy and Greece), the US, Brazil, Mexico and Australia, while having markets such as Japan, Ireland, Sweden and Poland, among others, as growth platforms.

With a workforce of more than 37,000 and assets of over €122 billion, it recorded turnover in excess of €33 billion and net profit slightly exceeding €3.61 billion in 2020. The company contributes to the maintenance of 400,000 jobs in its supply chain, with an annual procurement budget of €14 billion. A leader in the fight against climate change, Iberdrola has committed more than €120 billion over the last two decades to building a sustainable energy model based on sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.