Red Eléctrica repowers 220 kV Galicia line, lifting capacity 31%

Red Eléctrica has completed the repowering of the 220 kV line linking Mesón do Vento substation with Santiago de Compostela substation in Galicia, per the company's May 2026 announcement. Transfer capacity moves from 342 MVA to 447 MVA, a 31% uplift, without laying new right-of-way.

The work involved replacing the conductor cable along the full 48 km route and heightening 13 towers. Total investment came in above €800,000. That figure is modest relative to the capacity gain, reflecting the plan's explicit principle of maximising existing grid assets before committing to new-build corridors.

Galicia is a high-priority zone for Red Eléctrica. The region carries significant onshore wind output and is increasingly a staging point for Atlantic offshore development. Constrained 220 kV circuits in the area have historically limited renewable dispatch during high-generation periods. The additional 105 MVA of headroom directly addresses that bottleneck, though Red Eléctrica has not published zone-specific curtailment data tied to this circuit.

The project is one of several Red Eléctrica is executing in Galicia under the current grid plan. No completion dates for adjacent projects in the region were disclosed in this announcement.