Iberdrola and bp have announced a strategic collaboration to expand fast EV public charging infrastructure, support the adoption of electric vehicles and develop large scale green hydrogen production hubs in Spain, Portugal and the UK.

Iberdrola and bp charge points. Image courtesy: bp

Iberdrola and bp plan to form a joint venture that intends to invest up to €1 billion ($1 billion) to roll out a network of up to 11,000 rapid and ultra-fast EV public charge points across Spain and Portugal in the hopes of expanding access to electric mobility.

The plan includes installing and operating an initial 5,000 fast charge points by 2025 and up to a total of 11,000 by 2030, including bp and Iberdrola’s existing and future fast charging hubs.

The companies are also looking at options to jointly serve EV customers in the UK.

bp has stated its intention of leveraging its network of 1,300 retail sites in Spain and Portugal as locations for charging hubs for the joint venture. EV drivers would be able to charge in safe locations with access to additional convenience services.

Chairman of Iberdrola, Ignacio Galán, stated on the partnership: “With this agreement, we continue advancing in the decarbonisation and energy self-sufficiency through the electrification of two key sectors of our economy, transport and industry.

“The scale of this challenge requires alliances between companies such as Iberdrola and bp, which have the technology and knowledge necessary to help accelerate Europe’s industrial development and generate, at the same time, well-being and new opportunities for all through clean energy.”

Bernard Looney, CEO of bp, added: “Creating the lower carbon energy solutions that our customers want and need requires the integration of different technologies, capabilities and forms of energy.

“We can deliver this faster and at scale when we work in partnership with others. We have enormous respect for Iberdrola who have been an early leader in the energy transition – and are very excited about what we can deliver together.”

Integrated large-scale green hydrogen production

The companies also plan to form a joint venture for large-scale integrated green hydrogen production in Spain, Portugal and the UK as well as production of derivatives such as green ammonia, and methanol, that can be potentially exported into Nothern Europe.

The companies aim to jointly develop advantaged hydrogen production hubs in Spain, Portugal and UK, with a total capacity of up to 600ktpa, integrated with new renewable power.

The green hydrogen project at bp’s Castellón refinery will be part of the agreement. The two companies, together with the Instituto Tecnológico de la Energía, have submitted the Castellón project to the Spanish government’s hydrogen value chain PERTE call.

Likewise, Iberdrola and bp´s industrial hydrogen projects under development, as well as new projects, will be part of the agreement.

Based on this collaboration in Spain, Portugal and UK, Iberdrola and bp intend to explore potential future opportunities for green hydrogen production in other countries.