Ms Sánchez acknowledges that there is room for improvement for Spain’s electricity model, pointing to the Iberian peninsula’s relative isolation from the European grid compared to most of its EU neighbours. She also sees storage as an issue.
“While we have taken a good path when it comes to renewable installation, we cannot say the same regarding storage,” she says. “We need to foster storage installation.”
Spain’s political panorama adds an element of uncertainty to its energy future. The Socialist-led coalition has been mired in corruption scandals and its parliamentary majority appears to have collapsed in recent weeks, raising the possibility of a snap election in the coming months.
A right-wing government, which polls suggest would be the likely outcome, would almost certainly place less emphasis on renewables and advocate a partial return to more traditional energy sources.
But in the meantime, Spain’s renewable transition continues.
And for Figueruelas, in Aragón, that means not just cheap, clean energy, but investment. The town’s population, of just 1,000, is due to increase dramatically, with 2,000 Chinese workers scheduled to arrive to help build the new battery plant, which is expected to create up to 35,000 indirect jobs once it starts operating.
“These kinds of investments revitalise the area, they revitalise the construction sector, hostelry,” says local man Manuel Martín. “And the energy is free – it just depends on the sun and the wind.”