The Generalitat has closed the public-information period for PLATER after receiving 12,143 submissions and has begun reviewing them through the Institut Català d’Energia (ICAEN), Catalonia’s energy institute. The review will determine which technically viable changes are added before a second public consultation, affecting the areas proposed for future wind and solar infrastructure in municipalities across Catalonia.

PLATER is the territorial sectoral plan for wind and photovoltaic electricity generation, evacuation lines and energy-storage systems. It is intended to set the territorial rules and priority areas for renewable projects as Catalonia works towards decarbonising its energy system by 2050.

Municipalities can seek changes to priority solar areas

During the consultation, town councils were able to request a reduction of up to 35% in the land initially identified as a priority for photovoltaic installations where local criteria indicated that areas were unsuitable. For residents, this means the first map of potential solar sites can still be altered through the municipal submissions now being assessed.

  • 1,312 submissions came from public administrations.
  • More than 500 came from organisations and associations.
  • The remaining submissions were made by members of the public.

The Generalitat says the process is designed to combine technical planning with local circumstances. Its preliminary approach identifies priority spaces for wind and photovoltaic generation, with preference for already altered or developed land.

“This will be the major tool for organising and facilitating the installation of wind and photovoltaic energy.”Sílvia Paneque, Minister for Territory, Housing and Ecological Transition, in a Generalitat statement

Second consultation will test the revised plan

ICAEN is assessing the submissions to decide which proposals can be incorporated on technical grounds. The Generalitat then plans to publish the amended document for a second public-information period, covering changes to both the methodology and proposed locations.

Residents, local groups and councils wishing to follow the next stage can monitor the Generalitat’s official PLATER participation page, where consultation information is published.

Primary sources: govern.cat, participa.gencat.cat, ctesc.gencat.cat. Reported by Guillem Costa, europapress.es, Arnau Ruiz, Jordi Alemany, Camilo S. Baquero, expansion.com, CatalunyaPress.cat.