With the support of IDEPA, the office will be located in the Scientific & Technological Park of Gijón
China Three Gorges (CTG), the largest renewable energy group in China, chooses Asturias to establish an engineering division to oversee all of its energy constructions in Europe.
CTG is boosting the production of green energy and will open a technical office in Gijón for construction supervision, commissioning, and technical support activities.
To establish itself in Asturias, China Three Gorges has received the support of the Economic Development Agency of Asturias (IDEPA). The office will be located in the Impulsa Building, a business incubator belonging to the Gijón City Council and placed next to the former Universidad Laboral.
Why Asturias: low turnover rate and technical qualifications of workers
CTG Europe is a strategic partner of EDP Energía, with a strong presence in Asturias (EDP’s Spanish headquarters are in Oviedo). CTG is the largest shareholder (19.03%) of the Portuguese company, and has made significant investments in other clean energy generation platforms in Spain, Portugal, Germany, the United Kingdom and Greece.
— Its geostrategic location and the strength and capabilities of the industry and advanced services, among the advantages of Asturias to attract investment in this sector
— The Wind Energy fair in Hamburg showcased the strengths of a sector that will be key to the region’s energy transition
— The Government of Asturias is committed to the development of sustainable offshore wind projects that coexist with current uses, such as fishing activities
A few days ago, we attended the Wind Energy fair in Hamburg to show the great potential of Asturias in the value chain associated with the development of wind energy. A sector that will be key to the transformation of the productive model of our region.
Its geostrategic location for the settlement of companies linked to this sector or the power and capabilities of industry and advanced services associated with wind energy production activities are among the strengths and competitive advantages of Asturias.
Eleven Asturian companies attended Wind Energy as expert suppliers of equipment and components in this area, nine at the stand of the Trade Promotion Agency of the Principality of Asturias (ASTUREX):
Asturfeito, Duro Felguera, IDONIAL Centro Tecnológico, IDESA, Isastur, KLK Electromateriales, Mecainsa, Mecanizados CAS and Oxiplant.
As part of Asturian delegation, Gondán Shipbuilders and Windar Renewables had their own exhibition spaces.
Asturias explores offshore wind collaborations with Brandenburg and Scotland
During the Wind Energy fair we met Hendrik Fischer, State Secretary for Energy of the Brandenburg Ministry of Economy, Labour and Energy.
We talked mainly about the needs of this German federal state that could be met by companies from Asturias. Brandenburg has had the fastest development of wind energy in Germany, with 4,000 wind turbines currently installed, totalling 7,700 MW.
Enrique Fernández, Regional Minister of Industry, Employment, and Economic Promotion, undertook to deepen the contact established between the two territories to promote the supply of products and services of Asturian companies, as well as to attract new projects to Asturias.
We also held a meeting with Ivan McKee, Minister for Business, Trade, Tourism, and Enterprise of the Scottish Government. With Minister McKee, we shared our views on green hydrogen and onshore and offshore wind energy, which are key for both territories.
Our agenda also included meetings with relevant companies in the sector, such as the Canadian company Northland Power, the Danish company Vestas, the German companies Liebherr and Enercon and the Spanish-German company Siemens Gamesa.
We also met with Mario Buisán García and Pilar Muñoz, from the Spanish Economic and Commercial Office in Berlin, and with the Association of Metal Industries and Associated Technologies of Galicia (Asime).
Asturias’ attractiveness for wind energy investment
At the Wind Energy fair in Hamburg we showed why Asturias is an attractive place for investment in activities related to the wind energy sector. Among the strengths of our territory are:
Geostrategic location.
Power and capabilities of the industry and advanced services associated with wind energy production activities: manufacture of support vessels for offshore wind farms, manufacture of structures and components for wind farms, engineering companies with the capacity to design and develop on and offshore wind farms and offer technological solutions in structural integrity. The Asturian companies participating in the Fair are a good example of these strengths.
Attractive industrial environment for potential investors.
Technology centres supporting R&D activities.
Port infrastructures for the transport of wind turbine structures (very bulky and heavy).
Extensive network of industrial areas in which to set up.
Industrial culture that distinguishes Asturian workers.
All these factors represent a great competitive advantage for Asturias compared to other European regions in terms of attracting investment in activities linked to wind energy production.
Six reasons to promote offshore wind energy in Asturias
The Regional Minister lists six reasons for the installation of offshore wind farms in Asturias:
To contribute to achieving the objectives set in the energy transition process.
To maintain the security and quality of supply and compensate for the closures of thermal power stations.
Without coal, the only abundant energy resource in Asturias is wind.
For the expected increase in economic activity, considering not only the energy sector.
Because of the net generation of employment, in order to compensate for the workforce lost due to the dismantling of the regional coal chain.
Because it offers Asturian companies an opportunity to access or consolidate their position in a market with enormous potential for development in the coming years.
A commitment to sustainable offshore wind projects that coexist with fishing in Asturias
The Regional Government has already submitted a limited zoning proposal for offshore wind energy to the Spanish Ministry for Ecological Transition.
The objective of the regional authorities is to have 0.7 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power installed in Asturias in the coming years, with offshore wind turbines and in two limited areas: off Gijón and on the West coast.
Regional minister Enrique Fernández considers that offshore wind farms represent an “opportunity for the future” for companies and will help to create more sustainable value chains.
A thousand jobs in Asturias depend on offshore wind energy
One thousand jobs in Asturias depend on offshore wind and 50% more are expected. Another 2,000 are also linked to the sector, in addition to ArcelorMittal, that supplies sheet metal for the manufacture of wind power plants.
The land for the expansion of the Port of Gijón El Musel and the Logistics and Industrial Activities Zone (ZALIA), with a direct train connection to the port, are two of Asturias’ great assets in the energy wind sector.
Its use as an energy vector will be key to the green, digital and sustainable transformation of our region’s production model
Last week we assisted in Gijón to the meeting with the Asturian industrial technical engineers, collegiate at the COGITIPA, sharing a common thread: green hydrogen as a vector for energy transition and a lever for change in the Asturias production model.
The conference, held within the framework of the Asturias International Trade Fair (FIDMA, organized by the Gijón Chamber of Commerce), highlighted the great opportunity that green hydrogen represents for Asturias as a clean and sustainable energy generator and as a driver of economic activity and employment.
“Green hydrogen can mean for Asturias what coal meant for it”, said Enrique Fernández, Regional Minister of Industry, Employment, and Economic Promotion of the Government of Asturias, in his speech. For the minister, Asturias must diversify its energy sources and accelerate their implementation in order to move towards the transformation of its economy, in line with the guidelines of the European Union.
Our region, said Fernández, has everything it needs to be at the forefront of the “hydrogen race”. Asturias has leading companies (some with foreign capital) involved in the hydrogen value chain, producers of this green energy, water to supply the processes, infrastructures, large consumers of the energy produced, and the talent and the capabilities to continue advancing in this field.
The hydrogen plans and capabilities of large companies in Asturias
At the conference, we learned about the plans and capabilities in the field of hydrogen and decarbonization of five large Asturian companies or with a strong presence in our region: EDP Renewables, Enagás, ArcelorMittal, IDESA and TSK.
The Portuguese-owned energy company EDP Renewables presented its plans related to hydrogen for Asturias. The aim is to replace the thermal power plants of Soto de Ribera and Aboño. EDP wants Aboño to be the epicentre of the “Asturias Hydrogen Valley”, including electrolysis and photovoltaic plants, hydrogen storage plants and a hydrogen plant for heavy transport. In Soto de Ribera, and to complement the Aboño project, an electrolysis plant, combined gas cycles or hydroscrews would also be installed. The company’s expectations are to reach 1,000 MW of renewable energy installed in Asturias by 2030.
As for Enagás, the most relevant aspect today in Asturias is its participation in the HyDeal Spain consortium, which will be the first industrial implementation of the HyDeal Ambition platform in Europe. It will supply Asturian industry with renewable hydrogen for the production of green steel, green ammonia, green fertilizers and other low-carbon industrial products. Enagás’ presence in HyDeal, the world’s largest integrated renewable and competitive hydrogen hub, is crucial for the development of hydrogen transport and storage infrastructures. The company is also finalizing preparations for the start-up of its regasification plant at the Port of El Musel in Gijón.
Steel giant ArcelorMittal has also made a huge bet on the HyDeal project, which it hopes will give it access to the volume of green hydrogen needed to progress on its decarbonization roadmap for steel production in Spain. ArcelorMittal has a macro project in the pipeline to reduce CO₂ emissions generated in Spain by 50% by 2025. At the heart of the plan is the construction in Gijón of a direct reduction iron ore (DRI) plant with green hydrogen, which will have a production capacity of 2.3 million tonnes per year. It will be complemented by a hybrid electric furnace with a capacity of 1.1 million tonnes. The planned investment is €1 billion.
The Asturian company IDESA, one of the most important companies in the design and manufacture of capital goods worldwide, is finding its opportunity as part of the value chain in green hydrogen through knowledge. IDESA manufactures storage solutions and develops the installation works. It is currently collaborating with Iberdrola on Europe’s largest green hydrogen complex for industrial use, located in Puertollano. IDESA actively participated in the design of the H₂ storage generated by the electrolysers and signed a first contract for the supply of five storage tanks.
Finally, the Asturian engineering company TSK is also involved in the development of the HyDeal España project. HyDeal España has selected TSK to provide technical support to the project as engineering representative of the platform, in the role of Owner’s Engineer. TSK will be the technological partner of the promoter consortium and will participate in various phases of the project, including the development and construction of the hydrogen production plants planned by HyDeal.
The ultimate goal of all these strategies and projects is to join the collective effort towards a green, digital and sustainable transformation of the productive model of Asturias, always putting industry, innovation and sustainability on the table.
The North American multinational has opted for the Tamón complex (Carreño) to house its service centre, following Axalta’s envisaged transfer to the Asturias Technology Park in Llanera.
In Asturias the company has three factories, a service centre and 1,200 employees. Throughout this year it has incorporated around a hundred workers, a move that required additional building modules to accommodate them.
The service centre will function European-wide in the areas of human resources, information technologies, purchasing and logistics. It will also have a finance department offering its services globally. The companies are set to operate independently by 1st November, and the split will be definitive by June 2019.
Corteva, the agricultural division, and Du Pont, specialised products, belong to the DowDuPont company. This business conglomerate started operating in 2017 following the merge of the Dow Chemical and Du Pont multinationals. This multinational, with a 26-year history in Asturias, is present in over 90 countries, and is currently the largest chemical company in the world.
Within the framework of the institutional visit that the Government of the Principality of Asturias made to Mexico and Colombia between 23rd and 28th April 2017, a packed schedule of meetings and promotional activities was organised to share the opportunities that Asturias has to offer companies in both countries. The most notable act took place in Mexico D.F. on Thursday, 27th April, in Hotel Presidente Intercontinental Polanco; a corporate forum entitled “Bilateral relationship between Mexico-Asturias: Success stories and investment opportunities”.
Never has the world of science expected a material so eagerly as it has graphene, which is generating a huge amount interest. The potential that has been associated with it is so great that it is starting to be known as “the material of the future”, but what is graphene?
The Aviles-based quay in Valliniello makes an impressive entry into the history books of the Port of Aviles, with the shipment of the longest ever piece to be loaded onto a ship in the estuary.
Over 250 representatives from the business sphere attended the event, which took place on 7th June 2016 at the BBVA Innovation Center within the Asturian Investor’s Day programme.
This year the VI Technical Engineering Conference, held this upcoming 24th February within the framework of the SACYRFLUOR Engineering Week, will encompass theoffshore wind power sector.
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