Enel Grids 2022 global capacity additions ‘break record’ at 5.6GW

Enel Grids connected nearly 5.6GW of new producer and prosumer renewable energy capacity to its distribution grids around the world in 2022, a figure the Group is claiming as a new record.

According to Enel Group subsidiary, which is focused on electricity grids, the new capacity corresponds to up to 411,000 producers and prosumers, of which about 317,000 are in Europe and the rest in Latin America.

The cumulated grid-connected capacity of small and medium-scale renewable capacity in Enel Grids across the world reached 65.7GW3 at the end of 2022, which stems from a total of approximately 1.4 million of energy producer-consumers.

Connected renewable energy capacity

Enel is calling the results a signal of their increasing hosting capacity and the high level of digitalisation of their distribution grids.

Out of the new 5.6GW, 2.4GW were connected in Italy, of which roughly 2GW were solar PV, corresponding to installing more than 6 million standard solar panels.

The capacity was concentrated in the northern regions at 57%, with another 20% located in the central regions. The southern regions contributed with 14% and the remainder was installed in the Islands. The number of new connections made in the period amounts to approximately 204,000, about 2.5 times more compared to 2021.

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“Power grids are key in the current energy scenario, marked by the growing and ever more decentralised renewable generation and the increasingly active role of customers, as shown by the record numbers of producers and prosumers connected to the Enel Group’s grids in 2022,” said Antonio Cammisecra, head of Enel Grids.

“This unprecedented and bottom-up energy transition is driven by the large number of citizens making use of abundant clean natural resources to self-produce renewable energy. We are expecting even greater volumes for 2023 and beyond, as shown by the consistent growth of requests in the first weeks of the year.”

With the 2022 additions, the total number of prosumers and producers connected to Enel’s grid in Italy now amounts to approximately 1.2 million, for an overall renewable energy capacity of more than 34GW.

Spanish capacity

In Spain, Enel Grids connected 2.2GW of capacity, thanks to 97,000 new connections in 2022 (more than 3 times compared to 2021), up to a total of around 134,000, corresponding to an overall capacity of 24.4GW.

Of the Spanish regions served by Enel Grids, Extremadura, Andalucía and Catalunya have in aggregate installed 80% of the total power, with the remaining part divided between Aragon as well as the Balearic and Canary Islands.

The remaining additions were done mainly in Brazil, where 800MW were connected to the grids, almost twice the amount in 2021.

In announcing the figures, Enel Grids state the records underscore the growth of renewable electricity generation worldwide, which is both driven by utility-scale wind and solar plants, as well as by customer-led initiatives at the local level.

This search for energy independence is also causing a major shift in the role of power distribution grids and analysts, such as BloombergNEF estimates that in Europe the share of power injected in the distribution grids will rise to 66% by 2050, up from 27% in 2022.