The European Investment Bank (EIB) has given the green light for the project to construct the electricity interconnection between Spain and France across the Bay of Biscay. The bank will finance this strategic project with loans to the electricity transmission network operators in both countries, Red Eléctrica and Réseau transport d’électricité (RTE), totalling 1.6 billion euros.

This is a strategic project of common interest (PCI) for the European energy system, which will strengthen cross-border electricity interconnections by increasing electricity exchange capacity from 2,800 to 5,000 MW. This will improve the reliability of the electricity supply, not only between France, Spain and Portugal, but also with the rest of Europe.

First submarine interconnection
The work is already underway and is being completed by Inelfe, a company owned by Red Eléctrica and RTE. It consists of constructing the first underwater electricity interconnection between Spain and France, covering a total of 400 kilometres, 300 of which will be underwater. It will link the stations of Cubnezais in France and Gatika in Spain, two alternating current systems that will be transformed into direct current to travel from one end to the other.

The electricity interconnection is scheduled to be operational by 2028. When operational, it will almost double the electricity exchange capacity between France and Spain to 5,000 MW, and will allow the Iberian Peninsula to move towards the European interconnection target of at least 15% of installed generation capacity by 2030.

Connecting Europe
The EIB financing comes on top of the 578 million euros that the project received from the European Union in the form of a grant under the Connecting Europe Facility. The parties have already signed the contracts for the first tranches of the loans, totalling 1.2 billion euros, in Luxembourg.

EIB Group President Nadia Calviño argues that this support “is key for the Iberian Peninsula to stop being an energy island. This agreement will be a very important change from the point of view of energy integration, a key area for the competitiveness and strategic autonomy of the European Union.

Bridge between nations
Redeia President Beatriz Corredor, describes the project as “a bridge between nations, a key action for European cohesion that will allow us to face the greatest challenge of our time: the energy transition. The two countries must therefore continue to work closely together to strengthen our connections, as in the case of the two new projects planned to cross the Pyrenees.”

According to RTE’s Managing Director in charge of Finance, Strategy and Economics, Thomas Veyrenc, the signing of the loan is “an important milestone for the Bay of Biscay project, which will not only increase solidarity between France and Spain, but will also contribute to developing competitive, low-carbon electricity exchanges across Europe”.

Accelerating the energy transition
Climate is one of the EIB Group’s eight strategic priorities for the period 2024–2027. This project is also part of its action plan in support of REPowerEU, the programme to increase energy security and accelerate the energy transition by reducing the European Union’s dependence on fossil fuel imports.

In 2024, the EIB Group earmarked a record 31 billion euros to support EU energy security. In Spain, funding for energy security projects was higher than in any other EU country, with a total value of over 5 billion euros. Between 2019 and 2024, the bank financed 16.7 billion euros in energy projects in the country.

^{Photo: EIB}