Portugal and Spain to expand plans for pumped storage

• 2 hours ago (2026-07-27)
• David Flin

Europe 1178 Hydropower 165

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Portugal and Spain have announced they are increasing investment in pumped storage as rising renewable generation increases the need for large-scale, long-duration energy storage across the Iberian electricity system.

Portugal announced a National Energy Storage Strategy targeting 3.9 GW of pumped storage capacity by 2030 and over 5 GW by 2040. Spain’s Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge (MITECO), through the Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDEA) has awarded €165 million to seven pumped storage projects with a combined storage capacity of over 21 TWh spread across Andalusia, Asturias, Aragon, Extremadura, Catalonia and Galicia.

Future capacity additions in Portugal are likely to include the Alto Lindoso project and the proposed Minhéu pumped storage scheme. Renewable energy accounts for around 80 per cent of Portugal’s electricity generation. Increasing storage capacity is needed to provide greater flexibility.