Spain 2021 Energy Policy Review
The International Energy Agency (IEA) regularly conducts in-depth peer reviews of
the energy policies of its member countries. This process supports energy policy development
and encourages the exchange of international best practices and experiences.
Since the last IEA review in 2015, Spain has solved a long-standing issue of tariff
deficits in its electricity and gas sectors and closed all of its coal mines, which
has allowed it to place the energy transition at the forefront of its energy and climate
change policies.
The current Spanish framework for energy and climate is based on the 2050 objectives
of national climate neutrality, 100% renewable energy in the electricity mix, and
97% renewable energy in the total energy mix. As such, it is centred on the massive
development of renewable energy, energy efficiency, electrification and renewable
hydrogen.
Notwithstanding its considerable progress to date on decarbonising and increasing
the share of renewables in the electricity sector, Spain’s total energy mix is still
heavily dominated by fossil fuels. Notably, the transport, industry and buildings
sectors all have considerable work ahead of them to meet the country’s targets for
decarbonisation and higher shares of renewables.
When all of Spain’s plans and strategies are implemented, a completely different energy
sector will emerge in which fossil fuels are no longer dominant and end-user sectors
are mostly electrified. Such a transformed energy landscape will come with new challenges
and will provide new opportunities.
In this report, the IEA provides energy policy recommendations to help Spain effectively
manage this transformation of its energy sector.
Published on July 12, 2021
In series:IEA Energy Policy Reviewsview more titles