SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, 24th May. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Council of Tenerife is set to invest 15 million euros into the first phase of the Decarbonisation Plan of the public enterprise Balten, responsible for supplying irrigation water to the agricultural areas of Tenerife. This was announced by the Minister for the Primary Sector, Valentín González, who revealed that this initiative is being carried out with funding from the Council itself and the European Union. The main aim is for 86.6% of Balten’s energy consumption to be sourced from renewable sources, effectively preventing the emission of 8,850.74 tons of CO2 equivalent annually.
Valentín González emphasised that the measures outlined in this plan are geared towards mitigating the impacts of climate change and safeguarding the service against potential energy shortages. The initial phase has already seen the completion of photovoltaic installations in Valle San Lorenzo and the Isla Baja Complex. Presently, the first floating photovoltaic panels are being installed in the San Antonio pond, with the installation of floating panels in Valle San Lorenzo and the Isla Baja mini-hydroelectric station still pending.
This strategic approach will enable the separation of Balten’s provision of public irrigation water service from fossil fuel consumption, ensuring service continuity through investments that facilitate complete electrical self-sufficiency and surplus energy sales.
The overall Plan is funded with a budget of 48.7 million euros, based on credit availability, not only for investments in renewable energies. Further steps will involve assessing the energy production potential of all Balten facilities. This will enable the public enterprise to potentially generate and supply energy to the broader public sector of the island in the future, utilising, for instance, the extensive water surface areas in the island’s ponds or by establishing mini-hydroelectric plants at existing nodes in its vast pipeline network.
