Representatives of Red Eléctrica held a meeting today with the president of the Fuerteventura Island Council, Dolores García Martínez, and the mayors of La Oliva, Puerto del Rosario, Antigua, Tuineje, and Pájara, during which they shared details of the decommissioning plan for the 66 kV electric line from Corralejo (north) to Matas Blancas (south of the island). The decommissioning project will take place once the new 132 kV double-circuit line is fully operational and the necessary administrative authorisations for the removal of the former line have been obtained.

To prepare for the decommissioning work, which is being carried out in accordance with the Environmental Impact Statement for the 132 kV corridor, Red Eléctrica is working in close coordination with the Fuerteventura Island Council. To this end, it has held meetings with all the mayors of the municipalities along the route to explain the process and address any concerns. They will also inform the property owners jointly with the Island Council and other authorities.

Daniel Pérez Varela, Director of Infrastructure at Red Eléctrica in Islas Canarias, explained that 352 towers will be dismantled between Corralejo and Matas Blancas in different areas of the municipalities of La Oliva, Puerto del Rosario, Antigua, Tuineje, and Pájara. The work will be carried out considering local environmental constraints and include all necessary preventive and corrective measures, such as the removal of the entire infrastructure and the restoration of the land to its original state”.

The plan is to start work next year, and preparations are already underway to organise the implementation so they can begin once all necessary pre-construction steps have been completed. The work will not impact the electricity supply, which is secured through the new 132 kV line.

The decommissioning process will include the removal of 352 towers and their conductors, slackening and removing the conductors and ground wires, disassembling structures, collecting the conductors, ground wires, and insulator chains, demolishing the foundations, removing leftover civil works materials, and, where applicable, removing old tower bases as the main actions.