With RD-law 7/2025, dated June 24, the government accelerates the permitting of storage, which is crucial for ensuring the security and stability of the electrical system
Several measures are approved in this RD-law to expedite the permitting of storage. In this note, we highlight ten of them:
- Declaration of Public Utility
Electricity production facilities, along with storage facilities that inject energy into transmission and distribution networks, are declared to be of public utility. This designation allows for the compulsory expropriation of necessary assets and rights, and requests can be made for both the facilities and their associated evacuation infrastructures.
This measure offers a general benefit to the electricity system; however, it is important to address any concerns from landowners to avoid creating a sense of threat and to maintain trust in the storage facilities..
Additionally, it is essential to have the rights to the land in order to request access and connection permits for energy demand.
- Permitting simplification
Hybrid plants that incorporate electrochemical storage will be exempt from the simplified environmental impact assessment process if this storage is located within the original project area and the original project has a favorable Environmental Impact Authorization (DIA).
If the storage is outside the original project area, a simplified environmental assessment will be required, unless specific conditions are met that makes ordinary processing mandatory, according to Annex III of Law 21/2013.
Additionally, the Previous Administrative Authorization (AAP) and the Administrative Authorization for Construction (AAC) will be processed together, and the timelines for information submission to the relevant authorities will be reduced by half.
- Definition of installed power
A new definition of installed power is expected to be established within 12 months after the entry into force of this Royal Decree-law. Until then, installed power will refer to the maximum output of the common inverter of the power plant or storage module set.
When multiple storage facilities share the same transformer, the installed power of the set will be the maximum capacity of the common transformer, unless they share an inverter and its maximum power is lower than the power of the transformer.
For this purpose, when there are different values of maximum power of the inverter depending on the temperature, the value at 40 ºC shall be taken as the maximum power. If there is no power rating available at this temperature, the power of the immediately lower temperature shall be taken.
In any case, if the power has been limited and this limitation is accredited in a note signed by the manufacturer, the maximum power of the inverter will be the one stated in this document.
- Redispatch priority
The 4-hour battery capacity limit is removed, and it is made more flexible based on technology and modality. The dispatch priority is now as follows:
1. Renewable facilities, which include those with storage that does not draw from the grid, as well as those that do draw from the grid, provided their storage module’s installed power is equal to or less than the installed power of the renewable generation module.
2. High efficiency cogeneration facilities, including those that incorporate storage.
3. Other technologies.
- Connection of storage facilities
Storage access and connection permits will be considered flexible from a demand perspective.
However, this approach does not currently provide a solution, as detailed specifications have not yet been approved. Without these specifications, the incentives remain theoretical and lack practical application.
- Flexibility
A further step is taken towards the recognition of the figure of the aggregator, but it remains to be seen how it will relate to the rest of the market participants.
- Measures to improve the supply of demand connected to the transmision network
Starting October 1, 2025, new information on existing generation positions available for demand will be published every six months. This will also include updates on nodes intended for tenders.
In nodes where demand tenders were activated solely due to the lack of available positions, these tenders will be closed once the RdT development plan has been modified. Requests will then be granted based on temporal priority due to the change in circumstances.
- Repowering
For repowering projects seeking a permit to increase power by less than an additional 25% of the originally installed capacity, both substantive and environmental terms are reduced by half.
Through the permitting of these requests, the potential impact of any modifications or extensions in relation to the original project will be considered. This also applies to the hybridization of production and storage facilities.
- Provisional AAE for testing (Autorización de explotación para pruebas)
It will be mandatory for production and storage facilities.
The fifth milestone of RD 23/2020 will be applicable for the provisional AAE for testing, not for the definitive one:
· For access permits obtained between December 27, 2013 and June 25, 2020, the deadline will compute from June 25, 2020.
· For those permits obtained between June 26, 2020 and June 24, 2025, the term will compute from the date of obtaining the access permit.
If there is a precautionary measure that involves the suspension of the effectiveness of the administrative authorizations, the computation of deadlines for the accreditation of the milestones is suspended from the adoption of the suspension, until it is lifted.
The extension of the milestone, which cannot exceed 8 years, must be requested within a period of no more than 2 months, which will be calculated from:
· June 24, 2025, for projects that already have a AAC at the date of entry into force of RD-law 7/2025. Therefore, the deadline for requesting the extension would expire on August 24, 2025.
· The date of obtaining the AAC of the project, as long as it is after the entry into force of RD-law 7/2025.
Requests for extensions made under RD-law 8/2023 should be understood as referring to the provisional AAE for testing, not the definitive one, and they may request a new extension or advance of the semester within the 2 months described above.
Facilities with the fifth milestone expiring on June 25, 2025, will automatically have this milestone extended until September 25, 2025, without affecting the possibility of requesting an extension as described above.
- Guarantees
For demand facilities located in multiple Autonomous Communities or those that draw energy from the grid, that require authorization from the AGE (Administración General del Estado), a guarantee must be deposited with the CGD (Caja General de Depósitos). This guarantee will be cancelled when the generation guarantee is cancelled.
Regarding storage, it will no longer be necessary to include the CNAE code; it will simply be stated that it is for storage.
A storage facility will not be considered the same if any of the following events occur:
· If its geometric center moves more than 10km.
· If its CNAE code changes and this change affects the 2nd level of the CNAE code, according to RD 10/2025, of January 14, which approves the National Classification of Economic Activities 2025.
· If there is a reduction in the demand access capacity, provided that this reduction exceeds 50% of the access capacity originally requested and granted.
